m  MEMOmAM 
Dr.  Leo  NeymErk 


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The  Cambridge  Manuals  of  Science  and 
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EARLY   RELIGIOUS   POETRY   OF 
THE   HEBREWS 


CAMBBIDGE   UNIVEESITY  PKESS 

ILonlron:    FETTEB  LANE,   E.G. 

C.  F.  CLAY,  Manager 


fiFtjfnliurflfj:  lOO,  PRINCES  STREET 

Berlin:  A.  ASHER  AND  CO. 

ILetpjtfi:    F.   A.  BROCKHAUS 

i^eb)  Sorfe :  G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 

»omb8g  antJ  CTalcutta:  MACMILLAN  AND  CO.,  Ltd. 


All  rights  reserved 


V 


Cam&rrtge: 

PHTNTED   BT   JOHN   CLAY,   M.A. 
AT  THK  UMIVERSITT   PBESS 


h^ 


a>ft.A^    S23?7t 


^/'M  //5^  exception  of  the  coat  of  arms  et 
the  foot,  the  design  on  the  title  page  is  a 
reproduction  of  one  used  by  the  earliest  known 
Cambridge  printer j  John  Siberchy  1 5  2 1 


INTEODUCTION  /»  ^  'I 


The  title  ''Early  Religious  Poetry  of  the 
Hebrews  "  needs  a  further  definition.  It  is  intended 
to  embrace  the  Poetry  of  Old  Testament  times  as 
distinguished  from  the  Poetry  of  the  Synagogue. 
This  will  fix  our  period.  But  what  are  we  to  under- 
stand by  Religious  Poetry  ? 

The  Poet  is  the  man  whose  whole  being  is  in 
touch  with  those  voices  of  God  that  we  call  "Nature." 
He  may,  or  he  may  not,  be  a  religious  man.  In  other 
words,  he  may,  or  he  may  not,  recognise  the  Source 
of  those  voices.  The  Prophet,  on  the  other  hand, 
is  the  man  whose  whole  being  is  in  touch  with  the 
voices  of  God  in  Humanity.  He  must  be,  more  or 
less,  a  poet,  in  the  sense  in  which  we  have  defined 
the  word,  but  his  chief  sphere  will  be  the  poetry  of 
life.  His  message  will  necessarily  be  conditioned  by 
the  age  in  which  he  lives.  He  has  his  treasure  in  an 
"  earthen  vessel "  and  "  he  prophesies  in  part." 

This  that  is  true  of  individuals  is  also  true  of 
nations.  Each  nation  has  its  peculiar  gift,  and  Israel 
is  the  Prophet  of  Humanity.  When,  therefore,  we 
speak  of  the  Religious  Poetry  of  Israel  we  include  the 


Ivi262l45 


vi  INTRODUCTION 

whole  outcome  of  that  probation  whereby  the  Suffer- 
ing Nation  was  fitted  to  prepare  the  world  for  God. 
Thus,  for  example,  there  is  little  that  is  ^^ religious" 
in  the  Song  of  Deborah  or  even  in  David's  lamentation 
for  Saul  and  Jonathan,  but,  from  our  point  of  view, 
all  such  poems  must  be  included,  marking,  as  they 
do,  a  stage  in  Israel's  life. 

We  now  turn  to  the  outward  form  whereby  Hebrew 
poetry  is  distinguished.  I  have  no  desire  to  repeat 
at  length  what  has  been  so  often  written  on  parallelism 
as  a  feature  of  Hebrew  poetry.  And  yet  a  word 
must  be  said.  Parallelism  may  take  the  unsatisfying 
form  of  identity  when  it  becomes  a  mere  echo ;  though 
this  too  may  be  effective,  e.g.  Is.  xv.  1 : 

In  a  night  'tis  destroyed,  Ar-Mdab  is  ruined. 
In  a  night  'tis  destroyed,  Kir-Moab  is  ruined. 

More  frequently  the  words  are  varied  while  the 
thought  remains  the  same,  e.g.  Prov.  iii.  9 : 

Honour  the  Lord  with  thy  wealth, 
And  with  chiefest  of  all  thine  increase. 

At  other  times  the  parallelism  adds  to  the  thought 
either  by  way  of  development  or  antithesis. 

Or  again,  the  parallelism  may  be  alternate  when 
it  suggests  the  strophe,  e.g.  Ps.  Ixx.  5  : 

{a)  As  for  me — the  p6or-one,  the  needy  ! — 
(6)  Speed  t6  me,  O  Gdd. 

(«i)  My  H%er,  Deliverer,  Th6u! 
ipi)  0  J^hve  del^y  not. 


INTRODUCTION  vii 

The  "riddle"  of  Samson  (Judg.  xiv.  14,  18) : 

(a)  Out  of  the  feeder  came  f6od 

(b)  And  out  of  the  fierce  there  came  sweetness 

is  answered  by  completing  the  parallelism  thus  : 

(&i)      Wh^t  is  there  sweeter  than  h6ney? 
(a^)      And  wh^t  can  be  fiercer  than  lion? 

It  is  just  this  symmetry  of  thought  that  satisfies 
not  the  ear  alone  but  also  the  mind,  and  gives  such 
dignity  and  grace  to  Hebrew  poetry.  Kautzsch  (Die 
Poesie  und  die  poetischen  Bucher  des  A.  T.  p.  6  f.) 
well  points  out  the  analogy  between  rhyme  and 
parallelism  by  quoting  from  Faust,  Part  II,  the 
words  of  Helena  which,  in  Latham's  translation,  run 
thus : 

"Manifold  marvels  do  I  see  and  hear. 
Amazement  smites  me,  much  I  fain  would  ask. 
Yet  would  I  be  enlightened  why  the  speech 
Of  this  man  rang  so  strange,  so  strange  yet  pleasing. 
It  seemed  as  did  one  tone  unto  another 
Fit  itself,  fell  one  word  upon  the  ear, 
And  straight  another  came  to  dally  with  it." 

[See  the  whole  passage.] 

If,  in  the  last  line  but  one,  we  substitute  sentence 
for  word  we  have,  as  Kautzsch  says,  the  secret  of 
parallelism. 

"  That  which  the  Prince  of  Poets  here  reveals  as 
to  the  nature  of  Rhyme,  that  it  is  the  outcome  of 


viii  INTRODUCTION 

a  certain  inner  compulsion,  applies  also  to  the 
Parallelism  of  Members  in  Hebrew  Poetry.  Thus, 
of  it  too  we  may  say  : 

Scarce  has  a  sentence  fallen  on  the  ear 
When  straight  another  comes  to  fondle  it." 

He  also  quotes  Herder  as  saying :  "Does  not  all 
rhythm,  dance  and  harmony,  yes  every  charm  both  of 
shape  and  sound,  depend  upon  symmetry  ?  The  two 
members  strengthen,  raise,  confirm  one  another  in 
their  teaching  or  joy.  In  didactic  poetry  one  saying 
confirms  the  other.  It  is  as  though  the  father  spoke 
to  his  sons  and  the  mother  repeated  it." 

With  this  rhyme  of  thought  the  Hebrew  poet  did 
not  need  the  rhyme  of  words,  though  the  Hebrew 
language  with  its  pronominal  affixes  would  have 
easily  lent  itself  to  rhyme.  Indeed,  at  times  it  comes 
unsought  (e.g.  Ps.  vi.,  liv.  3f.;  Job  x.  9 — 18,  &c.).  It 
could  not  be  otherwise.  But  it  is  an  entire  mistake 
to  suppose  that  rhyme  was  ever  consciously  sought 
by  any  Hebrew  poet  of  Old  Testament  times. 

The  same  may  be  said  of  metre  if,  by  that  term, 
we  denote  the  measured  beat  of  long  and  short 
syllables.  The  metre  that  is  most  common  in  Hebrew 
poetry  is  that  of  three  accented  syllables  in  parallelism. 
This  we  indicate  by  (3  +  3).  Some  writers  on  Hebrew 
poetry  have  called  these  verses  hexameterSy  but  such 
a  term  leads  us  to  count  syllables  instead  of  accents. 
I  shall  therefore    avoid    it.     No  doubt  there  are 


INTRODUCTION  ix 

instances  in  which  the  (3  +  3)  metre  might,  with  a 
little  careful  reading,  be  scanned  as  hexameter,  but 
this  is  not  due  to  the  measure  of  the  syllables  but  to 
the  stress  of  the  accent. 

Thus,  if  we  take  the  line  Prov.  xxiv.  30  and  read 
it  strictly  by  the  accents,  passing  as  lightly  as  possible 
over  all  other  syllables,  it  would  run  as  follows  : 
al-s'd§h  ish-'atz^l  *av6,rti  |  v'al-k6rem  ad^m  |i'sar-lev. 
I  should  translate  this  : 

I  passed  by  the  field  of  a  sluggard  |  by  a  vine  that 
bel6nged  to  a  fool. 

The  passage  continues  as  follows  : 

And  16 !  'twas  grown  6ver  with  rubbish  |  and  the    fence 
of  its  stones  was  thrown  down. 

The  difficult  word  for  "  rubbish  "  gave  rise  to  a  gloss 
"  nettles  had  covered  its  face!' 

From  this  point  the  metre  becomes  irregular 
and  we  see  that  the  text  has  been  influenced  by  a 
quotation  from  Prov.  vi.  10  : 

As  for  m6  I  laid  it  to  he^rt ;  |  I  8§,w  and  received  instruction. 
A  little  sleep,  a  little  slumber, 
A  little  folding  of  hands  for  repose ; 
Then  c6mes  along  striding  thy  poverty  |  and  thy  nied  as  a 
man  with  a  shield. 

It  would  be  easy  to  find  verses  that  would  scan, 
e.g.  Ps.  liv.  3  : 

Elohim  b'shim'k^  hoshieyni 
Ubigvurath'k^  t'dineyni. 


X  INTRODUCTION 

Nor  would  it  be  difficult  to  find  hexameters  and 
pentameters,  e.g.  in  the  Balaam  poems :  but,  for  my 
part,  I  agree  with  Mr  Cobb,  who,  after  carefully 
examining  the  regular  and  irregular  forms,  writes 
as  follows : 

"What  shall  we  say  to  these  things?  Surely  we 
cannot  continue  to  say  that  English  verse  is  parallel 
with  Hebrew.  Nothing  like  this  was  ever  written 
in  English  in  the  name  of  poetry  unless  by  Walt 
Whitman.... If  all  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrew  Bible 
were  stored  in  our  memories,  we  could  point  to 
nothing  more  metrically  regular  than  are  some  of  the 
Psalms  which  have  been  before  us,  and  to  nothing 
less  regular  than  are  others  of  those  Psalms.  But 
it  would  be  a  mistake  to  suppose  that  the  two 
classes  are  equal  in  extent ;  the  irregular  poems 
greatly  predominate"  {Systems  of  Hebrew  Metre^ 
p.  30). 

It  is  highly  probable  that  Hebrew  "  metre  "  con- 
sisted, not  in  long  and  short  syllables  but  in  the 
rhythmical  beat  of  the  accent.  It  is  in  this  sense 
that  I  shall  use  the  word  metre  as  applied  to  Hebrew 
in  the  following  pages.  In  dealing  with  the  ir- 
regularities of  Hebrew  metre  the  question  naturally 
arises  as  to  the  correctness  of  the  text.  But  the 
knowledge  of  Hebrew  verse  is  not  yet  sufficiently 
advanced  to  justify  us  in  correcting  the  text  in 
favour  of  any  metrical  theory  unless  we  can  support 


INTRODUCTION  xi 

the  change  on  independent  grounds.  In  the  chapters 
which  follow  we  shall  have  occasion,  from  time  to 
time,  to  offer  a  few  suggestions  on  this  subject. 

The  following  facts  greatly  increase  the  diflBculty 
of  determining  the  laws  of  Hebrew  verse. 

(1)  We  cannot  be  sure  that  the  Masoretic  vowels 
and  accents  represent  the  ancient  pronunciation  of 
the  language. 

Strictly  speaking,  each  word  has  one  accent  which 
is  either  ultimate  or  penultimate  ;  but,  in  poetry, 
some  of  the  longer  words  may  have  a  subsidiary 
accent  which  falls  on  an  earlier  syllable,  e.g.  legdr- 
gerotMJca,  Prov.  i.  9. 

Where  two  words  are  joined  together  by  a  hyphen 
called  Maqqef  the  former  loses  its  accent :  but  the 
Masoretic  use  of  Maqqef  cannot  be  trusted  in 
Hebrew  poetry  ;  it  is  often  omitted  when  it  ought 
to  be  used  and  used  when  it  ought  to  be  omitted. 

(2)  The  duplicate  texts  that  have  come  down  to 
us  (e.g.  Ps.  xiv.  with  Ps.  liii. ;  Ps.  xl.  13 — 17  with 
Ps.  Ixx. ;  Ps.  Ix.  5—12  with  Ps.  cviii. ;  Ps.  Ixxi.  1—3 
with  Ps.  xxxi.  1  ff. ;  Ps.  cviii.  1 — 5  with  Ps.  Ivii. 
7 — 11 ;  2  Sam.  xxii.  with  Ps.  xviii.)  shew  that  the 
Divine  Names  constantly  changed  and  that,  in  many 
other  respects,  the  text  was  not  accurately  pre- 
served. 

Those  who  are  familiar  with  the  changes  that 
have    taken   place   in   popular  Hymns   will   easily 


xii  INTRODUCTION 

understand  that  the  Hebrew  Psalter  would  be 
specially  liable  to  change. 

Though  rhyme  is  only  an  accident  in  Hebrew 
poetry,  assonance  and  paronomasia  play  an  important 
part,  and  since  it  is  impossible  to  reproduce  the  effect 
in  a  translation,  it  will  be  necessary  here  to  give 
some  examples  in  the  original.  The  pitiful  cry  of 
the  final  i  (pronounced  like  a  long  e  as  in  me)  is 
frequent  in  lamentation.  Thus  the  lament  of  David 
over  Absalom  is  far  more  pathetic  in  the  original, 
which  we  may  transliterate  as  follows  : 

B'ni  AbshalOra,  b'ni  b'ni  Abshalom ! 
Mi  yitten  muthi,  S,ni  tachteka, 
Abshalom  b'ni  b'ni ! 

The  same  effect  is  very  frequent  in  the  Book  of 
Job.  We  have  also  an  instance  in  the  Song  of 
Lamech  (Gen.  iv.  23),  clearly  shewing  that  the  Song, 
at  all  events  in  its  original  form,  was  no  triumph- 
song  but  an  elegy.    Thus  : 

Ada  v'Tzilla  shema'an  qoli 
N6sh^-Lemek  ha'azena  imrathi 
Ki  Isch  haragti  I6phit?i 
V'yeled  I'chaburathi. 

We  may  also  (with  Kautzsch)  note  the  mocking 
sound  enu  in  Judg.  xvi.  24,  where  the  Philistines, 
rejoicing  over  the  fall  of  Samson,  say  "Our  God  hath 
given  into  our  hand  our  enemy,  that  laid  waste  our 


INTRODUCTION  xiii 

land,  and  that  multiplied  our  slain."     In  the  original 
thus  : 

Nathan  elohenu  beyadenw  eth-oy6v«nt« 
V'eth  machariv  Bxtzenu 
Va'asher  hirba  eth-ch'lalewM. 

We  can  scarcely  suppose  that  these  words  were 
actually  used  by  the  Philistines.  The  recurring  enu 
suggests  the  peevish  cry  of  children  ;  and,  indeed, 
the  words  must  have  been  intended  to  mock  the 
speakers. 

The  language  of  Jeremiah  expresses  at  times  the 
very  depths  of  sorrow.     Thus  Jer.  viii.  18  : 

Mabli'githi  'ai4y  ykgdn  \  'alai  libi  daviu. 

Read  slowly  and  note  the  spondee  effect  of  the  last 
three  words. 

We  may  translate  thus : 

Would  I  comfort  myself  against  sorrow  |  my  hekrt — in 
me — is  f^int. 

The  heart  and  courage  that  should  support  him  is 
itself  a  source  of  weakness  ;  for,  as  he  goes  on  to  say  : 

Harvest  is  p^st— Sdmmer  is  6nded— And  we  are  unsaved! 

Assonance  and  paronomasia  often  render  trans- 
lation quite  inadequate,  e.g.  Gen.  ix.  27  : 

Yaft  Elohim  1'  Yefeth  \  Vyishk6n  b'a'hS-K-Shem. 

"  God  shall  enlarge  Japheth  and  he  shall  dwell  in  the  tents  of 

Shem"(E.V.). 


xiv  INTRODUCTION 

Here  we  have  not  merely  the  play  upon  the  name 
Japheth  but  also,  I  think,  a  double  meaning  given 
to  the  name  Shem,  which  may  signify  "renown" 
(Num.  xvi.  2). 

Sometimes  in  addition  to  assonance  we  have  the 
root-meaning  of  a  verb  brought  out,  as  when  Isaiah 
(vii.  9)  says : 

Im  lo  tha'aminu  ki  lo  theamenu. 

"If  ye  will  uot  believe,  surely  ye  shall  not  be  established"  (E.V.). 

Here  the  verb  aman  "  to  believe  "  is  used  in  two 
voices  with  a  deep  inner  meaning  which  we  might 
paraphrase 

"  If  ye  will  not  stay  yourselves  (on  God),  ye  shall  not  be  stayed 
up." 

In  my  translations  I  have  done  my  best  to  imitate 
the  rhythm  of  the  Hebrew,  but  I  must  ask  the  reader 
kindly  to  bear  in  mind  the  fact  that  the  terseness 
of  Hebrew  renders  translation  difficult,  especially  in 
the  short  lines  of  verse.  In  a  little  book,  like  the 
present,  notes  on  the  translation  would,  for  the  most 
part,  be  out  of  place ;  I  fear,  therefore,  that  I  may, 
at  times,  appear  to  be  unduly  dogmatic.  This  must 
be  pardoned  from  the  necessity  of  the  case. 

I  have  translated  the  Tetragrammaton  by  Jdhve 
simply  because  Jehovah  is  an  impossible  form  and 
Jdhve  has  passed  into  common  use.  I  have  also 
assumed  the  popular  pronunciation  with  penultimate 


INTRODUCTION  xv 

accent,  although,  if  such  a  name  existed,  its  accent 
ought  to  be  ultimate.  In  the  same  way  I  have 
adopted  the  English  pronunciation  of  many  proper 
names,  e.g.  D4borah  instead  of  the  Hebrew  Dehor  ah. 
Since  Hebrew  poetry  does  not  depend  upon  long 
and  short  syllables  but  upon  the  beat  of  the  accent, 
I  must  ask  the  reader  strictly  to  observe  the  accents 
which  I  have  marked  in  my  translations. 

E.  G.  K 
18  January^  1911. 


CONTENTS 

CHAP.  PAGE 

Introduction v 

I.  The  Earliest  Poetry        ......  1 

II.  The  Poetry  of  the  Early  Kingdom        ...  17 

III.  The  I^inah .39 

IV.  Acrostic,  or  Alphabetical,  Poetry  ....  54 

v.       The  Problem  of  Suffering 74 

VI.      On  the  Strophe 103 

VII.  On  Dramatic  Lyrics 121 

VIII.  The  Poetry  of  the  Seasons     .        .        .        .        .  132 

Bibliography 154 

Index        .........  155 


CHAPTEE    I 

THE  EARLIEST  POETRY 

The  English  reader  who  knows  how  the  language 
of  Chaucer  differs  from  that  of  Shakespeare  will 
naturally  expect  the  earliest  poetry  of  the  Hebrews 
to  be  clearly  marked  by  archaisms.  It  is  well  there- 
fore to  state  at  once  that  this  is  not  the  case.  Of 
course  there  are  archaic  forms,  but  fragments  of 
Songs  and  popular  poetry  which  have  been  preserved 
in  the  Hexateuch  have  come  down  to  us  in  the 
language  of  the  Prophetic  Writers  of  the  8th  century 
B.O.  Thus,  the  Song  of  Lamech  (Gen.  iv.  23  f.),  reads 
as  follows : 

"Ada  and  Tzfllah,  |  Hear  my  voice; 
Wives  of  Lamech  1  he&rken  to  my  speech : 
For  a  m4n  I  have  sl&,m  to  my  wound ; 
A  yotith  to  my  htirt. 
If  sevenfold  vengeance  be  Coin's 
Then  L&mech's  be  seventy-s6ven." 

If  these  words  had  been  the  actual  words  of 
Lamech  they  would  have  beei#not  merely  archaic 
but  probably  not  even  Semitic.    In  point  of  fact  they 


2  OLD  TEXTS  MODIFIED  [cH. 

are  pure  Hebrew  written  in  the  ^tnah  or  elegiac 
measure  of  which  we  shall  have  occasion  hereafter  to 
speak.  It  is  quite  probable  that  the  Song  was 
founded  upon  some  Kenite  (Cain)  tradition  connected 
with  the  discovery  of  metal  weapons  (c£  v.  22) ;  for 
the  Kenites  were  the  smiths  of  the  ancient  world. 
But  the  Song  in  its  present  form  is  due  to  the 
Jehovist,  i.e.  to  a  prophetic  writer  of  the  8th  century 
B.C.  whose  object  is  to  trace  the  downward  course 
of  the  race  of  Cain  to  this  Lamech,  the  seventh  from 
Adam  shewing  the  fruits  of  murder  augmented  from 
"seven-fold"  to  "seventy  times  seven." 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  Gen.  v.  29  (which 
is  also  assigned  to  a  Jehovistic  writer)  we  read  of  the 
other  Lamech,  of  the  race  of  Seth,  "...and  he  called 
his  name  Noah,  saying,  This  one  shall  comfort 
(^/N^M)  us  for  our  works  and  for  the  toil  of  our 
hands  from  the  ground  which  Jahve  hath  cursed." 

The  Hebrew  words  for  ^^ vengeance"  (NKM)  and 
^^ comfort"  (N5M)  are  practically  identical  in  sound. 
The  good  Lamech  of  the  line  of  Seth  inherits 
^^  comfort"  the  bad  Lamech  of  the  line  of  Cain  inherits 
"vemygeanxie" 

If  we  omit  the  two  last  lines  Lamech's  song  is  a 
complete  elegy  (JS^inah).  1  suggest  that  a  Prophetic 
Writer  (the  J^  of  the  critics)  found  this  poem  in 
some  collection  of  Kenite  folk-songs,  and,  caring 
little  for  poetry,  but  much  for  edification,  added  the 


I]  THE  EARLIEST  POETRY  3 

two  last  prosaic  lines  to  make  out  his  allusion  to 
Gen.  iv.  15. 

Another  instance  of  ancient  poetry  which  appears 
to  have  degenerated  into  prose  is  the  quotation  from 
the  Book  of  Jashar  in  Josh.  x.  12  f. : 

"Sun  stand  thou  still  upon  Gibeon; 
And  thou  moon  in  the  valley  of  Ajalon." 

It  is  difficult  to  believe  that  a  poet  would  have 
written,  SMmesh  VGihydn  ddm,  with  two  accented 
syllables  in  painful  juxtaposition,  when,  by  changing 
the  order  of  the  words,  he  might  have  written  the 
musical  line,  SMmesh  ddm  VGihydn.  As  to  the 
words  which  follow,  "^o  the  sun  stood  still  and  the 
moon  stayed,''  &c.,  they  appear  to  be  simply  prose. 

The  amount  of  secular  poetry  in  Israel  must,  at 
one  time,  have  been  very  great :  thus  of  Solomon 
alone  it  is  said,  "And  he  spake  three  thousand 
proverbs,  and  his  songs  were  a  thousand  and  five. 
And  he  spake  of  trees,  from  the  cedar  tree  that  is 
in  Lebanon  even  unto  the  hyssop  that  springeth  out 
of  the  wall,..."  [1  Kings  v.  12  f.  (iv.  32  f.)] 

Poetry  is  older  than  prose ;  and,  in  ancient  Israel, 
every  impassioned  thought  expressed  itself  in  song. 
"It  was  indispensable  to  the  sports  of  peace,  it  was 
a  necessity  for  the  rest  from  the  battle,  it  cheered 
the  feast  and  the  marriage  (Is.  v.  12  ;  Amos  vi.  5 ; 
Judg.  xiv.),  it  lamented  in  the  hopeless  dirge  for  the 
dead  (2  Sam.  iii.  33),  it  united  the  masses,  it  blessed 

1—2 


4  COLLECTIONS  OF  POETRY  [ch. 

the  individual,  and  was  everywhere  the  lever  of 
culture.  Young  men  and  maidens  vied  with  one 
another  in  learning  beautiful  songs,  and  cheered  with 
them  the  festival  gatherings  of  the  villages,  and  the 
still  higher  assemblies  at  the  sanctuary  of  the  tribes. 
The  maidens  at  Shilo  went  yearly  with  songs  and 
dances  into  the  vineyards  (Judg.  xxi.  19),  and  those 
of  Gilead  repeated  the  sad  story  of  Jephtha's  daughter 
(Judg.  xi.  40) ;  the  boys  learned  David's  lament  over 
Jonathan  (2  Sam.  i.  18) ;  shepherds  and  hunters  at 
their  evening  rests  by  the  springs  of  the  wilderness 
sang  songs  to  the  accompaniment  of  the  flute  (Judg.  v. 
11).  The  discovery  of  a  fountain  was  the  occasion  of 
joy  and  song  (Num.  xxi.  17).  The  smith  boasted 
defiantly  of  the  products  of  his  labour  (Gen.  iv.  23). 
Riddles  and  witty  sayings  enlivened  the  social  meal 
(Judg.  xiv.  12 ;  1  Kings  x.).  Even  into  the  lowest 
spheres  the  spirit  of  poetry  wandered  and  ministered 
to  the  most  ignoble  pursuits  (Is.  xxiii.  15  ff.)  V 

But,  however  much  we  may  regret  the  fact,  the 
secular  poetry  of  Israel  has  not  survived,  except  only 
in  those  cases  where  it  was  taken  over  into  the  service 
of  Religion. 

At  a  very  early  date  the  poetry  of  Israel,  which 
had  lived  from  mouth  to  mouth,  was  collected  in 
a  written  form.    One  of  these  collections  was  called 

1  Reuss,  Art.  "Heb.  Poesie,"  Herzog.  Encyhl.  quoted  by  Briggs. 


I]  THE  EARLIEST  POETRY  6 

The  Booh  of  the  wars  of  Jahve^  which  is  quoted  in 
Num.  xxi.  14 — a  very  obscure  passage.  Two  other 
Songs  are  given  in  the  same  context  (Num.  xxi.  17f. 
and  xxi.  27  ff.),  one  being  the  Smig  of  the  Well  and 
the  other  a  taunt-song  recounting  a  defeat  of  the 
Moabites.  This  latter  song  is  introduced  by  the 
words  "They  that  make  taunt-songs  say....'' 

Kautzsch  suggests  that  both  these  songs,  and 
possibly  the  groundwork  of  the  Songs  of  Moses  and 
of  Miriam  (Ex.  xv.),  may  have  been  preserved  in 
this  Book  of  the  wars  of  Jahve.  Some  also  have 
supposed  that  the  words  of  Moses  (Num.  xi.  35  f.)  on 
the  journeying  and  resting  of  the  Ark  were  found  in 
the  same  source. 

Another  collection  of  similar  date  was  The  Book 
Jashar,  literally  The  Book  of  the  Upright^  i.e.  of 
Israel  (?).  This  Book  is  quoted  twice.  First,  as  the 
origin  of  Joshua's  prayer  (Josh.  x.  12) : 

"Sun;  stand  thou  still  upon  Gibeon, 
And  thou  Moon  in  the  valley  of  Ajalon " ; 

and  secondly,  for  David's  lament  over  Saul  and 
Jonathan,  which  must  be  considered  later  at  length. 
These  are  the  only  passages  in  which  the  Book  of 
Jashar  is  mentioned  in  our  present  Hebrew  text, 
but  some  have  supposed,  from  the  Septuagint  text 
(1  Kings  viii.  12  f.,  Greek  3  Kings  viii.  53  f.),  that  the 
words  of  Solomon  at  the  Dedication  of  the  Temple 


6  SONG  OF  DEBORAH  {oh. 

were  also  preserved  in  the  Book  of  Jashar.  These 
words  might  be  rendered : 

Jahve  tho6ght  to  dw611  in  thick-darkness ! 
I  have  built  Thee  a  House  of  Exalt§,tion, 
A  H6me  for  Thy  endless  Dwelling. 

Solomon  feels  that  the  Temple  is  to  mark  a  new 
stage  in  the  ever-growing  nearness  of  God.  He, 
Who,  in  earlier  times,  dwelt  in  the  "thich-darJcness" 
(Ex.  XX.  21 ;  Deut.  iv.  11,  v.  22),  would  now  dwell  in 
the  midst  of  His  people. 

The  word  I  have  translated  "Exaltation"  signifies 
"high-dwelling."  Similar  names  are  given  to  many 
Babylonian  temples,  e.g.  E-Sagila,  "the  lofty  House," 
E-Anna  "the  House  of  Heaven,"  E-Zida,  "the  fixed 
House,"  &c. 

The  Song  of  Deborah. 

The  history,  date  and  text. 

It  was  probably  about  the  year  1200  b.c.  when 
the  Northern  Tribes  were  reduced  to  servitude  by 
a  powerful  king  named  Sisera,  possibly  a  Hittite,  who 
headed  a  federation  of  "the  Kings  of  Canaan."  The 
plain  of  Esdraelon  gave  great  advantage  to  his 
numerous  horsemen  and  "chariots  of  iron";  so  "for 
twenty  years  he  mightily  oppressed  the  children  of 
Israel"  (Judg.  iv.  3).    The  deliverance  came  through 


I]  THE  EARLIEST  POETRY  7 

Deborah,  Israel's  Joan  of  Arc,  a  woman  of  the  Tribe 
of  Issachar  (Judg.  v.  15),  who  first  stirred  up  her 
fellow-tribesman,  Barak,  and  through  him  the  Tribes 
of  Issachar,  Ephraim,  Benjamin,  West  Manasseh, 
Zebulun  and  Naphtali.  Judah  is  not  mentioned,  and 
seems  at  this  time  to  have  been  of  little  importance  ; 
Reuben,  Gad,  Dan  and  Asher  refused  the  call.  The 
six  loyal  Tribes  met  Sisera  in  the  plain.  The  first 
of  the  many  battles  of  Esdraelon,  in  the  valley  of 
Megiddo,  resulted  in  a  decisive  victory  which  estab- 
lished not  merely  the  security  of  Israel  in  the  North 
but  which  also  tended  greatly  to  its  religious  unity. 

The  Song  of  Deborah  which  commemorates  this 
victory,  whether  actually  composed  by  her  or  not, 
is  recognised  by  almost  every  critic  as  belonging  to 
the  age  of  the  events  which  it  records.  It  is  un- 
doubtedly far  older  than  the  prose  version  which 
is  contained  in  Judg.  iv.  from  which,  indeed,  it  dififers 
in  some  important  points  which  need  not  now  be 
discussed.  The  Song  contains  archaic  forms,  one  of 
the  most  important  being  the  verb  in  v.  7,  which 
has  given  rise  to  the  mistaken  translation  "Until 
that  /,  Deborah,  arose.''  The  text  is,  in  parts, 
corrupt ;  indeed  Kautzsch  goes  so  far  as  to  say 
that  vv.  8 — 14  "are  nothing  but  a  heap  of  puzzling 


1  In  a  work  like  the  present  critical  notes  would  be  out  of  place. 
The  Biblical  students  may  be  referred  to  the  following  books.    Moore, 


8  SONG  OF  DEBORAH  [OH. 

Analysis  of  the  Song. 

Though  we  cannot  strictly  divide  the  Song  into 
strophe  and  antistrophe,  yet  there  is  a  relation  between 
the  Parts  which  should  be  carefully  studied. 

Part  I  {vv.  2,  3).  Prelude,  addressed  to  "kings" 
and  "princes"  of  a  united  Israel,  bidding  them  to 
"Bless  Jahve"  for  the  "devotedness"  of  the  loyal 
Tribes. 

Part  II  {vv.  4,  5).  A  meditation  on  the  victories 
of  Jahve  at  the  Exodus. 

Part  III  {vv.  6 — 8).  The  low  estate  to  which 
Israel  had  sunk  in  the  times  of  the  writer — A  con- 
trast ! 

Part  IV  {vv.  9,  10).  A  second  Prelude,  addressed 
to  the  Rulers  and  Judges,  bidding  them  to  "Bless 
Jahve"  for  the  "noble-devotion"  of  the  People — 
Compare  Part  I. 

Part  V  {v.  11).  The  "victory  of  Jahve"  which 
has  just  been  won  has  freed  Israel  like  a  second 
Exodus — Compare  Part  II. 

Part  VI  {vv.  12—15*  and  18).  The  high  estate 
to  which  Israel  has  now  attained — Contrast  Part  III. 

If  the  Song  had  ended  with  Part  VI  it  would  have 

on  Judges,  Critical  Edition  of  the  Hebrew  Text ;  G.  A.  Cooke,  The 
History  and  Song  of  Deborah;  Kautzsch,  Literature  of  the  Old 
Testament;  Zapletal,  Das  Deboralied  and  various  articles  in  Hastings' 
Dictionary  of  the  Bible. 


I]  THE  EARLIEST  POETRY  9 

had  a  certain  completeness  in  itself.  But  the  thought 
of  the  faithful  Tribes  who  are  praised  in  Part  VI 
suggests,  by  way  of  contrast, 

Part  VII  (vv.  15° — 17).  The  taunt-song  on  the 
unfaithful  Tribes. 

Part  VIII  (vv.  19 — 22).  A  magnificent  description 
of  the  Battle.  The  star-gods  of  Canaan  fight  in  their 
orbits  for  Jahve.  The  Kishon  river  of  Sisera's  home 
rises  in  torrent  to  sweep  him  away  ;  and  the  scene  ends 
(v.  22)  in  a  marvellous  piece  of  word-painting  in  which 
the  Hebrew  pictures  the  once  terrible  horses  hammer- 
ing their  hoofs  in  headlong  flight — "dadrdth  da'drOth 
dbhtrdvJ^    Zapletal  well  translates  this  verse 

"  Da  stampfen  die  Hiife  der  Rosse ; 
Der  Galopp,  der  Galopp  der  Renner!" 

Part  IX  {vv.  23 — 27)  records  the  events  in  the 
pursuit.  The  curse  on  Meroz  for  refusing  aid  and 
a  blessing  on  the  Kenite  friend  of  Israel. 

Part  X  {vv.  28 — 30).  A  taunt-song  picturing  the 
scene  in  Sisera's  home.  This,  from  its  own  point  of 
view,  is  a  masterpiece  of  irony.  The  text  has  suflered 
from  a  double  reading  in  v,  30. 

Metre. 

The  Ode  is  dithyrambic,  and  the  metre  irregular. 
For  the  most  part  it  is  3  +  3  metre  but  at  times  it 
breaks  into  the  more  lively  metre  (2  -h  2)  -f  (2  -H  2).  In 


10  SONG  OF  DEBORAH  [CH. 

the  two  Preludes  the  metre  again  varies.     I  have 
endeavoured  to  represent  this  in  my  translation. 

Part  I.    Prelude, 

2  For  Israel's  wh61e  self-abandonment — 
For  the  People's  dev6tedness 

Bless  ye  Jahve ! 

3  Hear  ye  kings  ;  |  hearken  ye  prfnces ; 
I  of  Jahve  |  I  would  sing. 

Would  h^mn  of  J^hve  |  Israel's  G6d. 

Part  II.     The  Victories  of  Jahve  at  the  Exodus. 

4  Jahve  when  Thou  wentest  forth  from  Seir, 
When  Thou  marchedst  from  the  field  of  Edom, 
The  earth  did  shake  |  the  heavens  dr6pped, 
The  very  clouds  |  dr6pped  water. 

5  Mountains  melted  |  at  the  presence  of  Jahve, 
At  the  presence  of  Jahve  |  Israel's  God. 

Part  III.    The  low  estate  to  which  Israel  is  reduced! 

6  In  the  d4ys  of  Shamg^r  ben-A'n&th 
In  {Israel  T)  r6ads  were  deserted. 

They  stole  along  by  byways,  |  twisting  lanes. 

7  Village-life  (?)  ceased,  |  In  Israel  they  ceased, 
Till  Deborah  r6se  |  as  a  M6ther  in  Israel. 

8  {The first  two  lines  are  corrupt  and  the  whole  verse  seems 

out  of  place.) 


Was  there  shield  or  dart  to  be  s6en 
'Mid  the  f6rty  thousand  of  Israel  ? 


I]  THE  EARLIEST  POETRY  11 

Part  IV.    A  second  Prelude. 

9       My  he^rt  is  to  israel's  leaders 
The  People's  n6bly-dev6ted-ones, 
Bless  ye  Jahve! 

10  Ye  that  ride  on  white  asses — 
Ye  that  sit  on  the  divan 

Or  that  walk  by  the  way 

{Muse  upon  your  deliverance  {1)). 

Paet  V.     The  victorious  work  of  Jahve  in  the  present. 

11  From  the  tw^ng  of  the  Archers  |  at  the  places  for  wliter, 
There  let  them  celebrate  |  the  victories  of  Jahve, 

His  victories  for  village-life  (?)  in  Israel. 

N6w  there  can  go  to  the  g^tes  |  a  People  of  G6d. 

Part  VI.    In  contract  with  Part  III. 

12  Aw&,ke,  awake,  Deb6rah  ; 
Aw&,ke,  awake,  utter  song; 

Rise  up  B^rak,  [  lead  captive  thy  captors  |  thou  s6n  of 
Abin6am. 


The  two  verses  which  follow  are  hopelessly  corrupt. 
They  seem  to  contain  obscure  allusions  to  the  Tribes 
of  Ephraim,  Machir  (i.e.  Manasseh),  Issachar  and 
Zebulun  who  were  loyal  to  Deborah.  We  pass  there- 
fore to  the  taunt-song  directed  against  the  stay-at- 
home  Tribes. 

It  opens  with  a  play  upon  the  word  "divisions" 
which  might  be  translated  '^rivers"  (as  in  Job  xx.  17). 
The  dividing  rivers  of  Reuben  were  a  fit  emblem  of 


12  SONG  OF  DEBORAH  [CH. 

the  divided  hearts  of  this  "  unstable "  tribe  (of. 
Gen.  xlix.  4).  The  word  translated  " sheep/olds" 
(E.V.)  is  only  found  here  and  in  Gen.  xlix.  14  where 
one  of  the  Tribes  is  pictured  as  an  ass  crouching 
down  between  the  panniers  (not  sheep/olds  as  E.V.) 
contented  to  be  a  burden-bearer,  caring  only  for  rest. 
I  believe  that  the  word  carries  the  same  taunt  in  the 
Song  of  Deborah. 

Part  VII.     The  taunt-song. 

15°      Am6ng  the  divisions  of  Reuben 

Great  were  the  s6archings  of  he^rt. 

16  Why  didst  thou  sit  'twixt  the  panniers 
Harking  to  the  pipings  for  the  flocks? 
Am6ng  the  divisions  of  Reuben 
Great  were  the  searchings  of  heart. 

17  Gllead  abode  s^fe  beyond  J6rdan ; 
And  Dan — why  stayed  he  by  ships? 
Asher  sat  still  by  his  coast-line, 
And  abode  by  his  creeks. 

A  verse  which  would  seem  more  in  place  in  Part  VI. 

18  Zebulun  was  a  people  that  held  life  cheap, 
And  Naphtali  was  in  the  f6remost  field. 

Part  YIIL     The  Battle. 

19  Then  came  kings  and  fotight; 
There  fought  the  kings  of  Canaan. 

In  T4S,nach  by  the  waters  of  Megiddo 
They  took  no  gain  of  m6ney. 


I]  THE  EARLIEST  POETRY  13 

20  From  heaven  foiight  the  st4.rs — 
Fotight  in  their  courses  'gainst  Sfsera. 

21  The  river  Kishon  o'erwhelmed  them, 
The  t6rrent-rlver  of  Kishon. 

[My  soul  march  6n  with  strength !] 

22  Then  were  the  h6r8e-hoof8  hammered 
By  his  galloping  galloping  racers  ^. 

Part  IX.    Events  in  the  pursuit. 

23  Ctirse  ye  M6roz,  saith  J&hve ; 
Curse  ye  her  dwellers  with  ciirsing ; 
That  they  c6,rae  not  to  Jahve's  help, 
To  Jahve's  help  'gainst  the  mighty. 

24  Blessed  by  women  be  J§,el 
The  wife  of  Heber  the  K6nite ; 

By  women  in  the  tent  is  she  blessed. 

25  Water  he  &sked,  |  milk  she  g^ve ; 
She  oflfered  butter  |  in  a  lordly  dish. 

26  She  laid  her  hand  to  the  t^nt-pin, 
Her  right  to  the  workman's  hammer. 
She  strdck  him  wounding  his  head, 
Piercing  and  striking  through  his  temples. 

27  He  s4nk,  he  fell,  he  l^y ; 

At  her  feet  he  sank,  he  fell ; 
Where  he  s4nk  he  shattered  fell! 

Paet  X.     The  scene  shifts  to  Sisera's  home. 

28  The  m6ther  of  Sisera  |  out  through  the  lattice 
Peers  through  the  window  |  and  gleefully  clills, 

"  Why  does  his  ch4riot  |  c6me  so  slow  ? 
Why  t&rries  the  tread  of  his  t6am  ? " 

1  Jer.  viii.  16,  xlvii.  3. 


14  JOTHAM'S  FABLE  [OH. 

29  Her  16,di©s,  her  wisest,  repl^, 
Yea  she  herself  |  &,nswers  herself ; 

30  "Are  they  not  finding,  |  dividing  the  spoil, 

Double  embroidery  |  for  the  head  of  the  h6ro, 
A  spoil  of  dyed  garments  for  Sisera, 
A  spoil  of  dyed  garments  and  'broidery, 
Of  double  embroidery  for  the  neck  of...." 

The  contrast  between  the  Sisera  lying  dead  with 
stricken  temples  and  the  Sisera  that  his  mother 
expected,  triumphant  "m  dyed  garments"  is  grim 
indeed. 

An  early  copyist  evidently  wrote  rhm  r^imthym, 
i.e.  "a  womb  two  wombs,"  instead  of  rkm  rkmthym, 
i.e.  ^^ embroidery  double  embroidery"  which  occurs 
later  in  the  same  verse.  This  has  given  rise  to  the 
unfortunate  translation  "  a  damsel  or  two  "  (E.  V.  and 
R.V.).  The  last  two  lines  of  v.  30  are  little  more 
than  duplicates  of  the  two  preceding  lines  and  may 
have  originated  in  this  way. 

One  other  example  of  the  most  ancient  poetry, 
dating  from  about  1120  B.C.,  is  Jotham's  Fable 
of  the  trees  (Judg.  ix.  8 — 15)  with  its  splendid 
irony. 

This  Fable  of  Jotham  is  undoubtedly  in  verse,  the 
metre  being  in  three  beats  as  follows  : 

The  tr^es  went  f6rth  on  a  time 
To  anoint  for  themselves  a  king, 
And  they  said  to  the  Olive,  Rule  o'er  us. 


I]  THE  EARLIEST  POETRY  16 

But  to  them  the  6live  replied, 
"Shotild  I  then  leave  my  rich-oil, 
Whereby  gods  and  men  get  honour, 
And  go  to  wave  o'er  the  trees?" 

Then  said  the  trees  to  the  Fig-tree 
Come  thou  and  be  our  queen. 
But  the  fig-tree  said  unto  them, 
"Should  I  then  le^ve  my  sweetness 
And  that  pr6duce  of  mine  so  g6odly 
And  g6  to  w^ve  o'er  the  trees?" 

Then  said  the  trees  to  the  Vine, 
Come  thoti  and  be  our  qu6en. 
But  the  vine  made  answer  to  th6m ; 
"Should  I  then  16ave  my  vintage, 
That  gladdens  both  g6ds  and  m6n, 
And  g6  to  w^ve  o'er  the  trees  ? " 

Then  said  the  trees  to  the  Bramble, 
Come  thoti  and  be  king  over  us. 
So  the  bramble  replied  to  the  trees; 
"if  ye  are  trdly  anointing 
Me  as  a  king  over  you 
Then  c6me  ye,  rep6se  in  my  sh^-dow; 
If  n6t,  let  come  fire  from  the  bramble 
And  devour  the  cedars  of  Lebanon." 

The  reader  will  notice  that  the  olive,  fig,  and  vine 
reply  in  the  same  metre  (3  +  3  +  3),  whereas  the 
pompous  answer  of  the  bramble  is  lengthened  out 
into  five  lines  (3  +  3  +  3  +  3  +  3). 

We  now  pass  over  a  period  of  about  one  hundred 
years  of  silence  till  we  come  to  the  hero-age  of  David 


16  DAVID'S  ELEGY  [oh.  i 

(c,  1000  B.C.)  "the  darling  of  Israel's  Songs"  (2  Sam. 
xxiii.  1) ;  David  alike  pre-eminent  in  music  and  in 
war.  The  very  greatness  of  David's  work  creates  a 
diflSculty ;  for,  as  all  Law  centres  round  the  name 
of  Moses,  its  originator,  so  well-nigh  the  whole  of 
Psalmody  has  been  ascribed  to  David.  According  to 
Amos  (vi.  5),  David's  name  was  associated  with  secular 
poetry  and  with  the  invention  of  musical  instruments. 
Fortunately  for  us,  David's  lament  over  Saul  and 
Jonathan  has  been  preserved. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  POETRY  OP  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM 

The  Poetry,  of  which  specimens  will  be  given  in 
the  present  chapter  may  be  said  roughly  to  belong 
to  the  age  of  David  and  Solomon,  though  we  shall 
have  occasion  to  illustrate  it  from  poems  of  a  much 
later  date. 

The  reader  will  kindly  remember  that  we  are  only 
professing  to  give  specimens  and  not  to  include  or 
even  to  mention  all  the  poems  that  might  reasonably 
be  assigned  to  the  prolific  age  of  David  and  Solomon. 

David's  Elegy  on  Saul  and  Jonathan, 

This  lovely  poem  was  taken,  by  the  Editor  of  the 
Books  of  Samuel,  from  the  lost  Booh  of  Jashar.  It 
is  undoubtedly  genuine.  It  breathes  the  spirit  of 
the  highlander  grieving  for  brave  comrades  slain 
on  their  own  mountains  by  the  despised  and  hated 
Philistine  of  the  lowlands. 

We  shall  first  ofier  a  translation  and  then  it  will 
be  necessary  to  give  a  few  brief  notes. 

K.  2 


18  DAVID'S  ELEGY  [ch. 

(2Sam.  i.  19ff.) 

19  Thou  roebuck  of  Israel !  |  pierced  on  thine  6wn  mountain- 

heights  ! 

How  ARE  THE  MIGHTY  FALLEN  ! 

Strophe  I. 

20  T611  it  n6t  in  G^th ; 

Announce  it  not  in  streets  of  Askelon ; 
L6st  the  daughters  of  the  Philistines  rejoice ; 
L^st  the  daughters  of  the  unclrcumcised  triumph ! 

Strophe  II. 

21  Ye  hills  of  Gilb6a  be  dewless ! 
Ye  fields  of  oblations  be  rainless ! 

For  there  was  the  shield  of  heroes  polluted; 
The  shield  of  Saul,  without  the  anointing. 

Strophe  III. 

22  From  the  bl6od  of  the  slain— 
From  the  fat  of  the  mighty — 

The  bow  of  Jonathan  turned  not  bS,ck — 
The  sw6rd  of  Saul  rettirned  not  6mpty. 

Strophe  IV. 

23  Saul  and  J6nathan  !— 

So  dear  so  delightful  in  life ; — 

And  in  death  undivided! 
They  were  swifter  than  eagles,  |  str6nger  than  lions. 

Strophe  V. 

24  Ye  daughters  of  Israel — 
Weep  over  Salil 

Who  clad  you  in  scarlet  |  with  Idxur^, 
Who  decked  your  apparel  ]  with  jewelry. 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      19 

25  How  ARE  THE   MIGHTY   FALLEN 

In  the  midst  of  the  battle ! 
Ah,  J6nathan !  |  pierced  on  thine  6wii  mountain-hefghts ! 

Strophe  VI. 

26  Woe  is  me  for  thee,  my  brother! 
J6nathan  to  me  so  dear! 

Thy  16ve  to  me  more  marvellous 

Than  woman's  love. 

How  ARE   the  mighty  FALLEN  ! 

the  w6,r-weapons  perished! 

The  word  t'^vt  (v.  19)  must  often  be  translated 
"pride,"  " glori/y"  "beauty,"  or  "delight,"  but  it  also 
signifies  the  "roebitck,"  probably  so  named  for  its 
"beauty."  It  is  applied  to  Asahel  (2  Sam.  ii.  18) 
who  was  "light  of  foot  as  the  roebuck"  In  early 
warfare,  as  we  know  from  Homer,  this  was  no  small 
praise.  In  our  poem  it  is  evident  from  v.  25^  that  the 
epithet  applies  to  Jonathan,  not  to  Saul.  Jonathan 
is,  indeed,  "  the  pride,"  the  "  dulce  decus  "  of  Israel ; 
but  such  a  translation  would  hide  from  the  English 
reader  the  picture  of  the  roebuck  "pierced  on  its 
own  mountain  heights." 

The  form,  ha  tz'vi,  does  not  mark  the  def.  article, 
as  E.V.  "  The  beauty  &c.,"  but  the  vocative  ;  like 
ha  bath  Jerushalaim  "0  daughter  of  Jerusalem" 
(Lam.  ii.  23). 

It  is  evident  that  Jonathan  is  chiefly  in  David's 
thoughts.    It  is  Jonathan  that  is  styled  the  "roebuck 

2—2 


20  DAVID'S  ELEGY  [ch. 

of  Israel/'  the  beautiful  stag  pierced  and  dying  in  its 
own  mountain  haunts.  To  this  thought  he  returns 
in  V.  25^  In  v.  22  Jonathan  is  placed  before  Saul 
and,  in  the  last  strophe,  v.  26,  Jonathan  stands 
alone. 

If  we  omit  the  refrain,  which  is  thrice  repeated 
{vv.  19,  25,  26),  the  poem  falls  naturally  into  six 
strophes  of  four  lines  each.  The  two  central  strophes 
(III  and  IV)  contain  the  central  thought,  the  praise 
of  the  dead^  their  valour  and  their  virtues — "Jonathan 
and  Saul"  {v.  22),  "Saul  and  Jonathan"  {v.  23).  The 
strophes  on  either  side  of  this  central  thought  corre- 
spond with  one  another,  strophe  V  with  strophe  I 
and  strophe  VI  with  strophe  II.  Thus  strophe  1 
pictures  the  "daughters  of  the  Philistines"  in  their 
joy,  strophe  V,  the  "daughters  of  Israel"  in  their 
sorrow. 

Strophes  II  and  VI  contain,  I  think,  the  most 
beautiful  thoughts  of  the  Elegy ;  strophe  II  referring 
to  Saul,  strophe  VI  to  Jonathan.  Of  Saul  (v.  21)  he 
thinks  as  of  the  Lord's  Anointed  and  feels  that, 
where  such  a  one  has  fallen,  the  very  hills  should  lose 
the  anointing  rain  of  their  fertility.  But  of  Jonathan 
(v.  26)  he  thinks  with  the  deepest  devotion  of  friend- 
ship. In  the  former  case  it  was  a  "shield  cast  away" 
{v.  21),  but  now  it  seems,  in  his  grief,  as  though  all 
"weapons  of  war  had  perished"  (v.  26).  "The 
religious  element  (says  Kautzsch,  Lit.  of  the  O.T.)  is 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      21 

quite  absent  from  the  Song.  But  what  a  monument 
has  David  here  raised  to  the  king  from  whom  he 
sufiered  so  much,  to  the  heroic  youth  at  his  side,  and 
not  less,  to  himself." 

Briggs  {Study  of  Holy  Scripture,  p.  381)  com- 
ments on  the  fact  that  this  "the  earliest  Hebrew 
dirge  "  is  not  written  in  the  Kinah  or  dirge  measure 
of  which  we  shall  speak  in  a  later  chapter.  But,  in 
this,  I  think  he  is  wrong.  It  is  quite  true  that  it  is 
not  composed  in  the  finished  and  artistic  form  of  the 
later  J^tnah ;  but  in  the  short  sob-like  lines  of  two 
beats  which  break  the  longer  lines  it  seems  to  me 
that  we  have  the  J^inah  measure  in  its  earliest  form. 
See  especially  vv,  23'',  26*^. 

The  Blessing  of  Jacob. 

We  must  now  consider  that  collection  of  ancient 
poetry  which  goes  by  the  name  of  the  Blessing  of 
Jacob  (Gen.  xlix.  2  fil),  and,  for  this  purpose,  it  will 
suffice  to  select  the  two  leading  Tribes  of  Ephraim 
(Joseph)  and  Judah.  It  is  impossible  to  give  the 
actual  date  of  these  tribe-poems  which  were  in- 
corporated by  the  Jehovist,  c.  850  B.c.  Probably 
they  are  at  least  as  old  as  the  time  of  Solomon. 

The  Blessings  cannot  be  understood  without  some 
brief  reference  to  the  position  of  the  12  Tribes  in 
relation  to  the  12  heavenly  Signs  or  to  their  position 


22  THE  BLESSING  OF  JACOB  [ch. 

in  the  "Camp"  (Num.  ii.).  Here  we  read  that  the 
Camp  of  Judah  with  its  standard  (the  Lion?)  was 
to  pitch  "on  the  east  side,  toward  the  sunrising" 
(Num.  ii.  3),  and  the  Camp  of  Ephraim,  with  its 
standard  (the  Ox  ?)  was  to  pitch  on  the  west  side 
(Num.  ii.  18).  Properly  Reuben,  as  the  first-born, 
ought  to  have  occupied  the  higher  place  as  is  ex- 
plained in  1  Chron.  v.  If.:  "Now  the  sons  of  Reuben 
the  firstborn  of  Israel  (for  he  was  the  firstborn) ;  but 
forasmuch  as  he  defiled  his  father's  bed,  the  birth- 
right was  given  to  the  sons  of  Joseph  the  son  of 
Israel :  and  the  genealogy  is  not  to  be  reckoned  after 
the  birthright.  For  Judah  prevailed  over  his  brethren, 
so  that  the  Ruler  should  be  from  him ;  while  the 
birthright  should  belong  to  Joseph." 

These  words  are  very  important  as  giving  the 
oldest  comment  on  the  Blessing  of  Jacob, 

The  position  of  Joseph  on  the  west  (Num.  ii.) 
brings  him  into  connexion  with  the  seventh  month 
(Autumnal  Equinox).  In  Gen.  xxx.  23,  the  Elohist 
derives  the  name  Joseph  from  the  root  asaph,  "to 
gather  in."  This  word  asaph  is  constantly  used  of 
the  ingathering  of  the  fruits  of  the  earth,  Asaph 
being  the  oldest  name  for  the  Feast  of  Ingathering 
(Ex.  xxiii.  16,  xxxiv.  22),  which  was  held  in  the 
seventh  month.  Further  we  note  that  the  Elohist 
(Gen.  xxx.  20,  23'')  regards  Joseph  as  the  seventh  son, 
so  that  if  the  12  Tribes  were  written  in  the  order  of 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      23 

the  12  Months  Joseph  would  come  in  the  7th  Month 
with  the  great  Ingathering  {Asaph)  of  the  fruits  of 
the  earth. 

These  brief  remarks  are  necessary  in  order  that 
we  may  understand  the  Blessing  which  follows. 
Though  Joseph  is  mentioned  as  receiving  the  Blessing 
it  is  evident  that  Ephraim  is  in  the  writer's  mind 
(cf.  Gen.  xlviii.  20).  I  think  it  probable  that  the 
original  poem  began, 

A  fruitful  bough  is  Ephraim, 
the  name  Ephraim  being  derived  in  Gen.  xli.  52  from 
the  Hebrew  word  mgmiymg  fruitfulness. 

We  now  give  the  words  of  the  Blessing  so  far  as 
they  relate  to  this  idea  oi  fruitfulness^  reserving  the 
other  portion  of  the  Blessing  for  later  consideration. 

(Gen.  xlix.  22ff.) 

22      A  fruitful  botigh  is  Joseph, 

A  friiitfal  bough  by  a  spring; 
With  6flf8hoots  o'ermounting  the  w^U 


25®    Blessings  of  heaven  ab6ve, 

Blessings  of  the  deep  that  croticheth  under, 
Blessings  of  briasts  and  w6mb, 


Blessings  of  the  everlasting  mountains, 

The  desire  of  the  eternal  hills, 

May  they  be  upon  J68eph's  head, 

On  the  head  of  him  crowned  among  brothers. 


24  JOSEPH  [OH. 

We  must  compare  this  with  the  Joseph-blessing 
in  the  Song  of  Moses  (Deut.  xxxiii.),  a  Poem  which 
was  probably  written  in  the  Northern  Kingdom  in 
the  reign  of  Jeroboam  II  (c.  780  B.C.).     Thus : 

(Deut.  xxxiii.  ISflf.) 

B16ssed  by  J^hve  (be)  his  l^nd 

From  prime  of  heaven's  dew, 

From  the  deep  that  croucheth  tinder, 

From  the  prime  of  the  outcome  of  suns. 

From  the  prime  of  the  outbreak  of  m6on8, 

From  the  chiefest  of  Ancient  mountains, 

From  the  prime  of  eternal  hills. 

From  the  prime  of  earth  with  her  fulness. 


Let  them  come  upon  J6seph's  head, 

On  the  head  of  him  crowned  among  br6ther8. 

The  word  which  we  have  translated  ^' prime" 
signifies  the  "  choicest  fruiV' \  thus  we  see  that  the 
Divine  thought  for  Joseph  was  exactly  that  which 
was  expressed  in  ih^  Asaph  or  Feast  of  Ingathering y 
viz.  the  summing  up  of  all  fruitfulness  for  the  use  of 
man  and  for  the  honour  of  God. 

We  now  return  to  the  words  which  we  omitted  when 
we  considered  the  Blessing  on  Joseph  in  Gen.  xlix. 

23  And  they  bitterly  vexed  him  and  sh6t, 
And  the  ^-rchers  pm-sued  him  with  h4te: 

24  But  his  bow  ab6de  in  strength 

And  his  4rms  and  hands  were  made  strong 

By  the  hands  of  the  Mighty  of  Jacob. 

[From  thence  is  the  Shepherd  the  stone  of  Israel.] 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      25 

In  the  first  five  lines  we  have  a  picture  of  "Joseph" 
suffering  persecution  but  strengthened  by  the  hand 
of  God.  This  is  the  germ  of  that  thought  which,  in 
later  times,  found  expression  among  the  Jews  as 
Messiah  ben  Joseph,  the  suffering  Messiah. 

The  fifth  line,  "From  thence  is  the  Shepherd"  &c., 
has,  I  believe,  never  been  explained.  I  suggest  the 
following :  The  root  asaph  is  used  not  only  of  the 
*^ gathering  in"  of  fruits  but  also  of  the  "gathering 
in"  i.e.  the  "folding"  of  sheep  (Gen.  xxix.  7,  8)  and  is 
applied  to  God  as  the  Shepherd  gathering  in  His 
people  like  a  flock  (Mic.  ii.  12,  iv.  6). 

The  Second  Isaiah  pictures  God  as  the  Shepherd 
of  the  stars,  folding  them  all  like  sheep,  and  draws 
the  lesson  that,  much  more  will  God  be  the  Shepherd 
of  Israel.    Thus : 

(Is.  xl.  26  ff.) 

Lift  up  your  eyes  on  high, 

And  see  who  created  (all)  th6se; 

That  marshals  their  host  by  number, 

And  nameth  them  kW  by  their  n^mes; 

Through  abundance  of  might 

And  p6wer  of  strength 

Not  one  of  them  faileth. 

We  have  a  similar  poetical  image  in  Browning's 

Satd: 

"...the  tune  all  our  sheep  know,  as  one  after  one, 
So  docile  they  come  to  the  pen-door  till  folding  be  done. 

And  now  one  after  one  seeks  its  lodging,  as  star  follows  star 
Into  eve  and  the  blue  far  above  us, — so  blue  and  so  far!" 


26  SHEPHERD  OF  ISRAEL  [CH. 

There  was  undoubtedly  a  relation  between  the 
gems  which  represented  Israel  (Ex.  xxviii.  17  flf., 
xxix.  8ff.)  and  the  "stones  of  fire"  (Ezek.  xxviii.  13f.), 
i.e.  the  stars  in  the  sky.  As  in  Ezek.  xxviii.  the 
"Cherub"  that  "walked  up  and  down  'midst  the  stones 
of  fire  "  represented  the  Patron  of  Tyre,  so  in  Gen. 
xlix.  the  heavenly  Patron  of  Israel  is  none  other 
than  God  Himself,  who  shepherds  the  stones  of 
Israel. 

The  thought  of  God  as  the  Shepherd  of  Israel  was 
one  peculiarly  dear  to  the  Prophets  of  the  Captivity, 
e.g.  Jer.  xxxi.  10:  "He  who  (now)  scattereth  Israel 
will  gather  him,  and  will  keep  him  as  a  shepherd  doth 
his  flock"  (cf.  Ezek.  xxxi  v.). 

We  have  traced  a  connexion  between  Joseph  and 
Asaph  with  the  double  thought  of  the  Ingathering 
of  the  fruits  of  the  earth  and  the  Ingathering  by  the 
Good  Shepherd.  We  have  also  found  a  hint  of  Joseph 
as  a  Sufiferer  strengthened  by  God.  The  present 
writer  has  shewn  that  a  connexion  exists  between 
the  Asaph  Psalms,  the  Asaph  Feast,  the  House  of 
Joseph  and  the  "Shepherd  of  Israel"  {Psalms  in 
Three  Collections,  Part  II.  Introd.  v.fl:  Cf.  Part  III. 
Introd.  viii.,  x.). 

One  of  these  Asaph  Psalms  is  of  special  interest 
from  a  poetical  point  of  view,  not  only  for  its  beauty 
of  thought  but  also  for  the  regularity  of  its  rhythm 
and  its  clear  division  into  strophes  indicated  by  the 
thrice  repeated  refrain.     At  the  risk  of  a  slight 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      27 

digression  it  may  be  well  to  consider  it   in  this 
place. 

The  Hebrew  text  has  been  carefully  analysed  by 
Mr  Cobb  in  his  Systems  of  Hebrew  Metre,  p.  30  f. 
In  the  translation  which  follows,  I  have,  for  the  most 
part,  accepted  his  emended  text. 

(Ps.  Ixxx.) 
Strophe  I. 

2  Thou  Shepherd  of  Israel,  hearken ! 
That  leadest  Joseph  like  sheep; 
Shme  forth  Thou  cherub-throned! 

3  ['Fore  Ephraim,  Benjamin  and  Manlisseh*] 
Rotise  Thy  mighty  strength 

And  c6me  our  great-8alv&,tion. 

4  God  of  Hosts,  rest6re  its! 

Let  shine  Thy  Face,  that  we  be  saved! 

Strophe  II. 

5  G6d  of  H6st8,  how  long  ? 

Shouldst  Thou  fume  'gainst  the  prayer  of  Thy  People  ? 

6  Thou  hast  fed  them  with  bread  of  t6ars ; 
With  tears  in  full  measure  for  drink. 

7  Thou  m^kest  us  strife  to  our  neighbours ; 
And  our  enemies  latigh  us  to  8c6rn. 

8  God  of  Hosts,  restore  us  ! 

Let  sflfNE  Thy  Face,  that  we  be  saved! 

Strophe  III. 

9  A  vine  Thou  didst  m6ve  out  of  Egypt ; 
Driving  out  nations  and  planting  it. 

1  ?  Gloss. 


28  SHEPHERD  OF  ISRAEL  [oh. 

10  Thou  mSdest  r6om ;  |  it  struck  its  roots ;  |  and  filled  the 

L6.nd. 

11  The  mountains  were  cl^d  with  its  shide; 
And  its  br&,nches  were  G6d-like  cedars. 

12  It  ptit  forth  its  botighs  to  the  Sea; 
And  its  tendrils  reached  to  the  River. 

Strophe  IV. 

13  Why  didst  Thou  break  its  hedges, 

So  that  ^11  that  pass  b^  may  pluck  it? 

14  The  b6ar  from  the  wood  lays  it  w&,ste 
And  field-creatures  p^ture  up6n  it. 

15  God  of  Hosts,  return  now ! 
L6ok  from  heaven  and  s6e. 

16  T^ke  thought  for  this  vine, 

And  the  stem  that  Thy  right-hand  hath  pl6,nted, 

17  It  is  burned  with  fire  as  mere  fdel ! 

Strophe  V. 

At  the  rebuke  of  Thy  F4ce  let  them  p6rish. 

18  Be  Thy  h^nd  on  Thy  right-hand  m^n; 

On  the  Man^  thou  madest  strong  for  Thyself. 

19  For  we  will  not  go  b4ck  from  Thee: 
Give  us  life,  and  we  c411  on  Thy  N^me. 

20  G6d  op  H6sts,  restore  us! 

Let  shIne  Thy  Face,  that  we  be  saved  ! 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  Psalm  falls  into  five 
strophes,  three  of  which  are  closed  by  the  refrain. 
Very  possibly  the  refrain  originally  closed  all  five 
strophes. 

1  "Sou  of  Man." 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      29 

The  best  commentary  on  this  Psalm  is  the 
Blessing  on  Joseph  (Gen.  xlix.). 

The  contents  of  the  Psalm  might  be  summed  up 
briefly  as  follows : 

Strophe  I.     An  Appeal  to  God  as  the  Shepherd  of  Joseph 

(cf.  Blessing^  Gen.  xlix.  24^). 
Strophe  XL    Joseph  cruelly  persecuted  (cf.  Blessing^  Gen.  xlix. 
23). 
/  Strophe  III.  Joseph  as  the  Vine  of  fruitfulness  (cf.  Blessing^ 
\  Gen.  xlix.  22,  25,  26). 

V  Strophe  IV.    Why,  then,  has  God  forsaken  His  Vine  ? 
Strophe  V.     Surely  Joseph  implies  a  "Son  of  Man"  whose 
arms  were  made  strong  by  God  ?  (cf.  Blessing^ 
Gen.  xlix.  24). 

It  will  be  seen  that  strophe  IV  answers  to 
strophe  III,  strophe  V  to  strophe  II,  while  strophe  I 
is  a  general  summary  of  the  whole  Psalm. 

It  will,  I  think,  be  evident  that  we  are  justified 
in  regarding  the  Joseph-Blessing  as  Messianic.  The 
Camp  of  Joseph  ("Ephraim,  Benjamin  and  Manasseh," 
Ps.  Ixxx.  2,  Num.  ii.  18  flP.)  on  the  west  with  its 
emblem  of  the  Ox,  and  the  Divine  Name  Elohim, 
with  the  thoughts  of  the  Ingathering  (Asaph),  the 
Asaph  Psalms  and  the  Shepherd  of  Israel,  form  a  part 
of  that  conception  which,  at  a  much  later  time,  took 
shape  in  the  Jewish  expectation  of  a  "Messiah  ben 
Joseph,"  who  was  to  be  a  Sufferer. 

We  now  turn  to  the  Blessing  on  Judah  (Gen. 
xlix.  9  ff.).    If  the  order  of  the  Tribes  in  the  Blessing 


30  JUDAH  [CH. 

of  Jacob  be  compared  with  the  order  in  the  four 
Camps  (Num.  ii.),  it  will  be  seen  that  they  practically 
agree,  except  for  the  fact  that  the  Camp  of  JudaJi 
(i.e.  Judah,  Issachar,  Zebulun)  has  changed  places 
with  the  Camp  of  Reuben.  The  order  in  the  Poem 
is  the  more  ancient,  in  other  words  the  Camp  of 
Judah  originally  belonged  to  the  South,  Judah  coming 
with  Leo  at  the  Summer  Solstice.  This  will  explain 
the  fact  that  the  emblem  of  Judah  was  the  Lion. 

This  point  of  the  Cycle  is  also  associated  with  the 
Divine  Name  Yah,  the  name  Judah  ( Yehudah)  lending 
itself  to  the  Hebrew  word  which  signifies  ^^praised," 
and  also  to  the  Divine  Name. 

The  reader  is  asked  to  note  the  play  upon  the 
name  Judah,  the  reference  to  the  Lion,  and,  possibly, 
to  the  geographical  position  of  the  Tribe,  in  the 
Blessing  which  follows : 

(Gen.  xlix.  8ff.) 

8  Judah  art  thoti  |  that  thy  brethren  prdise ; 
Thou  layest  thine  hand  |  on  the  neck  of  thy  foes ; 
To  thee  shall  bow  down  |  the  s6n8  of  thy  father. 

Another  fragment  in  difierent  metre  refers  to  the 
position  of  Judah  in  the  Camps  and  possibly  in  the 
geography  of  the  Land. 

9  A  Lion's  whelp  is  Jtidah ; 

From  the  prey,  my  86n,  thou  art  gone. 

He  coticheth  reposed  as  a  Hon, 

As  an  old-lion,  who  shall  arotise  him? 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      31 

10  The  sceptre  departs  not  from  JMah, 
Nor  the  st^fF  of  sw4y  from  before  him, 
Until  the  c6ming  of  Shlloh 

And  the  drawing  of  Peoples  to  him. 

In  this  last  line  I  follow  the  reading  of  the 
Samaritan  text  (see  also  Chaldee)  which  suggests  the 
"flowing  together"  of  the  Peoples,  like  water.  This 
idea  is  found  in  Is.  ii.  2  (Mic.  iv.  1) ;  Jer.  li.  44 ;  Is.  Ix.  5. 
See  also  my  note  on  Ps.  xxxiv.  5  (6). 

The  words  which  follow  have  no  apparent  con- 
nexion with  V.  10,  though  personally  I  believe  the 
reference  to  be  to  the  mystical  "Vine  of  Eridu," 
rather  than  to  the  suitability  of  Judea  for  the  growth 
of  the  vine.  (See  my  notes  on  Pss.  Ixxx.  8  ff.,  Ixxii. 
16.)  If  this  be  so,  i;.  11  is  also  Messianic,  containing, 
as  it  does,  a  reference  to  "The  Vine  of  David \" 

11  Binding  his  c61t  to  the  Vine, 
The  f6al  of  his  4ss  to  the  S6rek; 
He  st6eps  his  garment  in  wine. 
His  cl6thing  in  bl6od  of  the  gr4pe. 

12  A  darkness  of  6yes  through  wine, 
A  whiteness  of  teeth  through  milk. 

In  V.  11  the  "colt"  and  "the  foal  of  the  ass" 
suggest  Zech.  ix.  9,  where  the  Messiah  is  pictured 
"riding  upon  an  ass  and  on  a  colt  the  foal  of  an 
ass,"  while  the  latter  part  of  the  verse  suggests  the 
Conqueror  from  Edom  (Is.  Ixiii.  1 — 3)  with  garments 

1  On  the  "  Vine  of  David,"  see  also  p.  129. 


32  SONG  OF  MOSES  [oh. 

stained  as  with  the  blood  of  the  grape.  Thus  we 
have  one  continuous  Messianic  thought  in  vv.  10, 
11. 

We  cannot  compare  the  Judah-blessing  in  Gen. 
xlix.  with  the  later  blessing  in  Deut.  xxxiii.,  as  we 
did  in  the  case  of  the  Joseph-blessing,  because,  in  the 
opinion  of  some  scholars,  the  words  (Deut.  xxxiii.  7) 
"Hear,  Jahve,  the  voice  of  Judah,  and  bring  him 
in  unto  his  people,"  should  read  "Hear,  Jahve,  the 
voice  of  Simeon"  with  a  play  on  the  name  Simeon 
which  signifies  "God  hath  heard"  (Gen.  xxix.  33). 

Song  of  Moses  (Ex.  xv.  1  fl!). 

The  rhythm  of  this  Song  is  very  perfect.  It 
consists  of  four  beats  in  each  line,  divided  in  the 
middle  by  the  caesura.  The  first  line  of  u  14  has, 
it  is  true,  only  three  beats  ;  but  this,  I  think,  is 
intentional  and  gives  the  efiect  of  a  rest  in  music. 
A  good  reader  would  pause  on  the  word  "tremble." 

The  line  which  constitutes  the  5th  verse  has,  in 
the  Hebrew,  exactly  the  ring  of  a  pentameter ;  this 
I  have  endeavoured  to  reproduce  in  my  translation. 

As  to  strophes  there  is  no  clear  indication,  but 
the  natural  divisions  seem  to  me  to  be  after  vv.  8,  12, 
18.  This  gives  three  strophes  of  12,  11,  and  13  lines 
each.  The  refrain  would  probably  be  repeated  at 
the  end  of  each  strophe  (cp.  Ex.  xv.  21). 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      33 

(Ex.  XV.  Iff.) 
Refrain. 

1  To  Jin  IT  IS  I  SING  I  FOR  Hb  hath  proudly  triumphed: 
The  Horse  as  well  as  rider  |  He  hath  thrown  into 

THE  SEA. 

Strophe  I,  recounting  the  victory  of  Jahve. 

2  My  strength  my  song  is  Jah  |  and  He  is  my  salvation : 
Such  is  my  God,  I  praise ;  |  ray  father's  God,  I  ext61. 

3  Jahve  is  a  man  of  war,  |  J4hve  is  His  N4me. 

4  Pharaoh's  chariots  and  host  |  He  hath  cast  into  the  sea : 
The  choicest  of  his  captains  ]  are  stink  in  the  Red  Sea. 

6    The  deeps  have  covered  them  sinking  |  down  to  the  depths 
like  a  stone. 

6  Thy  right  hand,  Jahve,  |  is  gl6rious  in  p6wer ; 
Thy  right  hand,  Jahve,  |  breaketh  the  enemy, 

7  In  Thy  excellent  gre§.tne8s  ]  Thou  destroyest  Thy  foes. 
Thou  sendest  Thy  wr&th  |  that  consumeth  as  stubble. 

8  With  the  blast  of  Thy  nostrils  ]  the  w6,ters  were  piled ; 
Upright  as  a  heap  stood  the  flo6ds ;  |  the  deeps  in  the  sea's 

heart  grew  turbid. 

Strophe  II.     The  hodst  of  the  enemy  coyitrasted  with  the 
triumph  of  Jahve.     Compare  the  Song  qf  Deborah. 

9  The  enemy  s^id,  |  I  purstie,  I  o'ert4ke ; 

I  p6rtion  the  spoil,  |  I  sate  myself  6n  them ; 

I  draw  but  my  sword,  |  my  h^nd  di8poss6sseth  them  ! 

10  Thou  didst  blow  with  Thy  wind  |  the  sea  overc6vered  them 
They  sank  as  lead  |  in  the  mighty  waters. 

11  Wh6  like  Thee  |  among  the  gods,  O  Jahve? 
Who  like  Thee  |  glorious  in  holiness  ? 
Celebrate  in  praise-songs  |  working  wonders  ? 

K.  3 


34  SONG  OF  MOSES  [CH. 

12  Thou  didst  stretch  Thy  right  h&,nd  |  earth  swallowed  them 

tip: 

13  Thou  didst  shepherd  with  Thy  m6rcy,  |  this  People  Thou 

redeemest : 
Thou  didst  lead  them  on   with    power  [  unto    Thy    holy 
Dwelling. 

Strophe  III.     The  effect  of  this  victory  upon  the  Nations  as 
a  stage  in  the  establishment  of  God's  kingdom  upon  earth. 

14  The  Peoples  have  heard  and  tremble— 

Terror  hath  laid  hold  |  on  Philistia's  inhabitants : 

15  N6w  are  confounded  |  (all)  the  dukes  of  Edom : 

The  mighty  men  of  Moab  |  trembling  hath  seized  them : 
Melted  are  ^11  |  the  habitants  of  Canaan : 

16  Fallen  up6n  them  |  is  terror  great  and  dr^ad. 

By  the  greatness  of  Thine  4rm  |  they  are  still  as  a  st6ne. 

To  the  end  that  there  p4ss  |  Thy  People,  0  Jahve; 

To  the  end  that  there  p4ss  |  this  People  Thou  purchased, 

17  That  Thou  bringest  and  pl^ntest  |  in  the  Mount  of  Thine 

heritage, 
The  Place  for  Thee  to  dwell  |  that  Th6u  didst  make,  0  J^hve, 
The  Sanctuary,  Lord,  |  that  Thine  hands  established. 

18  J&^hve  shall  be  King  |  for  ever  and  6ver. 

The  deliverance  at  the  Red  Sea  would,  undoubt- 
edly, have  been  celebrated  in  song,  and  the  words 
which  we  have  here  as  the  refrain  may  have  been 
the  actual  words  used  by  Moses  and  Miriam.  But 
the  Song,  in  its  present  form,  belongs  to  a  later  age, 
when  the  Sanctuary  was  established  in  Zion  (see  v.  17). 
The  leading  thought  in  the  Song  is  the  Kingship  of 
God  upon  earth,  established  by  a  Theophany.    This 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      35 

will  be  seen  more  clearly  if  we  read  it  in  connexion 
with  such  passages  as  the  following  with  which  it  is 
closely  related. 

An  unknown  Prophet  (Is.  xi.  15  f.)  pictures  the 
return  of  Israel  from  Assyria  as  a  drying  up  of  the 
Euphrates  and  a  second  passage  of  the  Red  Sea ;  and 
then,  with  the  Song  of  Moses  in  his  mind,  he  goes  on 
to  say  (xii.  1  ff.)  In  that  day  thou  shalt  say, 

I  th4nk  Thee,  Jahve :  |  tho'  Thou  wast  kngry  with  me, 
Thine  ire  is  turned  |  and  Thou  dost  comfort  me. 
Lo,  God  of  my  salvation !  |  I  trust  and  will  not  fear : 
For  My  Strength  my  Sorig  is  Jdh  \  and  He  is  my  Salvation. 


In  that  day  ye  shall  say : 

Thdnk  ye  Jdhve  \  Celebrate  His  Ndme\ 

Declare  among  the  Peoples  His  deeds; 

Recount  that  His  N4me  is  exalted. 

Hymn  ye  Jahve  |  for  proudly  hath  He  ddne : 

Let  this  be  newsed  |  in  all  the  earth. 

Cry  aloud  and  sing  |  thou  inhabitress  of  Zion ; 

For  Israel's  Holy-One  |  is  gre^t  within  thee. 

In  these  last  words  the  Theophany  is  pictured  as 
a  Divine  Indwelling.  This  thought  is  developed  in 
Ps.  cxiv.  which  is  one  of  the  Songs  of  the  Hallel,  and 
belongs  to  the  general  cycle  of  Passover  Hymns. 
This  Psalm,  of  course,  belongs  to  a  later  date,  but  it 
will  be  well  to  consider  it  now  as  illustrating  the 
Song  of  Moses. 

3—2 


36  A  THEOPHANY  [ch. 

(Ps.  cxiv.) 

Strophe  I. 

When  Israel  came  out  of  Egypt, 
Jacob  from  barbarous  people, 
Then  Judah  became  His  sanctuary, 
Israel  His  seat  of  dominion. 

Strophe  II. 

The  Sea  beheld  and  fled ; 
Jordan  was  turned  away  back ; 
The  mountains  skipped  like  rams  ; 
The  hills  like  the  young  of  the  flock. 

Strophe  III. 

What  ailed  thee,  0  Sea,  that  thou  fleddest? 
Thou  Jordan  that  thou  shouldst  turn  back? 
Ye  mountains,  why  skipped  ye  like  rams? 
Ye  hills  like  the  yoting  of  the  flock  ? 

Strophe  IV. 

Travail  thou  l^arth  at  the  Master's  Presence, 
At  the  Presence  of  Jacob's  God ! 
Who  turned  the  R6ck  into  water-p6ols, 
The  flint  into  sprfnging-w^ters. 

In  the  four  strophes  of  this  Psalm  the  connexion 
of  thought  is  plain.  Strophe  I  states  the  fact  of  the 
Indwelling  of  God  in  His  Chosen  People  in  times 
past.  Strophes  II  and  III  picture  the  effect  of  this 
Indwelling  upon  Nature ;  the  Red  Sea,  the  mountains, 
and  the  Jordan  recognising  their  God.    Strophe  IV 


II]      POETRY  OF  THE  EARLY  KINGDOM      37 

returns  to  the  thought  of  strophe  I.  The  Divine 
Indwelling  is  still  a  fact  which  Earth  must  yet 
recognise  in  the  birth-pangs  of  a  new  creation. 

One  further  illustration  may  be  taken  from  the 
Theophany  in  Ps.  xviii.  8ff. 

8  Then  ^arth  itself  quivered  and  quaked, 
The  mountains'  foundations  were  troubled, 
Yea,  they  quivered  because  He  was  wroth. 

9  There  went  up  a  smoke  from  His  nostrils, 
And  a  fire  consumed  from  His  mouth, 
Yea  flames  were  kindled  therefrom. 

10  So  He  bowed  the  Heavens  and  came, 
With  the  Darkness  tinder  His  feet. 

11  He  r6de  on  the  Cherub  and  flew, 
Came  sw6oping  on  wings  of  the  wind ; 

12  He  made  of  the  darkness  His  covert, 
His  pavilion  all  round  Him — 

Darkness  of  waters —  |  dense  clouds  of  the  skies. 

13  Through  His  splendour  opposing  |  His  dinse  clouds  rem6ved, 
Hail  with  flames  of  fire ! 

14  And  Jahve  thundered  in  heaven. 
The  Most  High  gave  forth  His  voice. 

15  He  sent  forth  His  arrows  and  scattered  them, 

He  8h6t  ^vith  His  lightnings  and  "  troubled  ^"  them. 

16  Then  the  bed  of  the  waters  was  s6en. 
The  foundations  of  earth  were  laid  bare, 
At  thy  chiding  0  Jahve— 

At  the  blast  of  the  "breath  of  Thy  ndstrilsl" 

17  He  sent  from  on  high,  He  t6ok  me, 
Dr6w  me  from  m^ny  waters, 

1  Ex.  xiv.  24.  2  Ex.  xv.  8. 


38  A  THEOPHANY  [ch.  ii 

18  Freed  me  from  enemies  mighty, 
From  f6es  that  were  str6nger  than  1 

19  In  that  d^y  of  my  weakness  they  m^t  me, 
But  J4hve  became  my  stky: 

20  He  brought  me  f6rth  into  liberty. 
He  fr^ed  me  becatise  He  I6ves  me. 

The  rhythm  in  this  fine  passage  is  regular  except 
in  vv.  12,  13,  where  there  is  reason  to  think  that  the 
present  text  is  not  altogether  correct.  The  Psalm  is, 
of  course,  a  national  Psalm  and  recounts  the  de- 
liverance of  Israel  at  the  Red  Sea  by  that  free  choice 
of  God  which  indicates  a  fuller  deliverance  in  the 
future  (v.  20). 


CHAPTER    III 

THE  ?:iNAH 

The  origin  of  the  Ktnah  is  the  lament  for  the 
dead.  We  have  already  seen  that,  even  in  the  oldest 
Lament  that  has  come  down  to  us  from  the  times 
of  David,  the  intensity  of  grief  found  a  natural 
expression  in  the  occurrence  of  short  sob-like  lines. 

Thus  : 

Thy  love  to  me  more  marvellous 
Than  w6man'8  love! 

In  later  times  professional  mourners  were  engaged 
at  funerals  and  the  Ktnah  became  a  distinct  measure 
or  rhythm.  Thus  we  read  (2  Chron.  xxxv.  25) :  "And 
Jeremiah  lamented  for  Josiah  and  all  the  singing  men 
and  singing  women  spake  of  Josiah  in  their  Kinahs 
(i.e.  lamentations)  unto  this  day." 

But  since  nations  die  as  well  as  individuals  the 
Prophets  often  use  the  Ktnah  to  lament  their  death. 
Even  in  the  earlier  Prophets  like  Amos  (c.  750  B.C.), 
we  find  perfect  specimens  of  the  Ktnah,  e.g.  Amos 

V.  2: 

She  is  fallen,  to  rise  no  more, 

The  Virgin  of  Israel ! 
Spread  out  up6n  her  14nd, 

None  to  upraise  her ! 


40  JEREMIAH  AND  EZEKIEL  [oh. 

Compare  also  Amos  viii.  10.  The  Kinah  is  fre- 
quent in  the  writings  of  Jeremiah  and  in  those  of 
Ezekiel. 

Thus  Jeremiah  (ix.  10  ff.)  says  : 

On  the  motintains  I  t4ke  up  a  w&iling ; 

On  the  wflderness  pastures  a  Kinah. 

They  are  burned  that  n6ne  can  pass  through  them! 

Nor  can  sound  of  cattle  be  h6ard ! 

From  bird  of  heaven  to  beast 

They  are  fled  and  gone ! 
And  I  make  of  Jerusalem  heaps, 

A  dwelling  of  dragons  ! 
And  the  cities  of  Judah  I  make  desolation 

That  n6ne  can  inhabit ! 

And  again,  in  vv,\7^.'. 

Consider  ye,  and  call  for  the  Kinah-women  that  they  may 

come... 
Let  them  t^ke  up  a  wailing  for  us. 
That  our  eyes  may  run  over  with  weeping, 
Our  eyelids  gush  water. 


Teach  ye  your  daughters  the  dirge ; 
Each  6ne  her  neighbour  the  Kinah. 
For  Death  is  come  up  to  our  windows, 
Entered  within  our  palaces ! 
Cutting  off  child  from  the  street, 

Yotiths  from  the  market! 


Jeremiah  (xxxviii.  22)  pictures  the  women  of  the 
royal  house  of  Judah  taunting  Zedekiah  when  fallen 


Ill]  THE  KtNAH  41 

into  the  hands  of  his  quondam  allies,  the  Chaldeans, 
and  saying  : 

They  deceived  and  outm^stered  thee  quite, 

These  men  of  thy  peace! 
Thy  feet  are  stink  in  the  mire, 

They  are  turned  away  b&ck ! 

I  believe  that  Budde  (Hast.  Diet.  Poetry  Hebrew) 
is  right  in  maintaining  that  the  Ktnah  was,  par 
excellence,  the  verse  of  the  women.  It  was  used  by 
them  chiefly  as  mourners  for  the  dead,  but  also,  as 
we  have  seen,  in  taunt-songs.  The  Prophets  naturally 
express  themselves  in  the  language  of  their  day  and 
frequently  use  this  popular  metre,  not  only  as  the 
genuine  expression  of  sorrow,  but  also,  as  the  taunt- 
song  directed  against  the  nations  of  the  world  whose 
downfall  they  foresee.  Ezekiel  constantly  mentions 
the  Ktnah  (ii.  10;  xix.  1,  14;  xxvi.  17;  xxvii.  2,  32; 
xxviii.  12;  xxxii.  2,  16),  and  uses  the  metre  in  his 
lament  over  the  deportation  of  the  two  princes. 

In  translating  this  we  must  retain  the  Hebrew 
word  h'phir,  which  the  E.V.  generally  translates 
^^young  lion,''  since  the  Hebrew  has  many  words  for 
Hion,"  the  English  only  one.  Kphir  denotes  a  lion 
that  has  attained  to  maturity. 

(Ezek.  xix.  2fi:) 

What  of  thy  mother  the  lioness  ? 

Am6ng  Idphirtm,  she  nourished  her  whelps. 


42  EZEKIEL  [CH. 

And  she  brought  up  6ne  of  her  whelps; 

A  Kphir  he  became. 
And  he  learned  to  tear  prey,  |  he  ^te  m6n. 
So  the  n§,tions  heard  rumour  about  him ; 

In  their  pit  he  was  taken: 
To  the  L^nd  of  ^gypt  they  brought  him  in  chains. 
When  she  s4w  she  had  waited,  |  her  hope  disappointed, 
She  ch6se  out  6ne  of  her  whelps 

She  m^de  him  Kphtv. 
So  he  walked  about  among  lions; — 

A  KpMr  he  became. 
And  he  learned  to  tear  prey,  |  he  4te  m6n. 
And  he  knew...  [text  doubtful] 

And  their  cities  he  wasted 
Till  the  L§.nd  with  its  fulness  lay  desolate 

At  the  sound  of  his  roaring. 
So  the  Nations  set  on  him  |  from  provinces  round ; 
And  they  spread  out  their  n6t  around  him: 

In  their  pit  he  was  t§,ken : 
So  they  plit  him  in  cage  in  chains. 
And  brought  him  to  Babylon's  king, 

And  brought  him  to  strongholds 
That  his  voice  should  never  be  heard  ag^in 

On  the  mountains  of  Israel. 

This  passage  has  all  the  appearance  of  having 
been  written  in  the  regular  ^inah  measure.  I  have 
endeavoured  to  reproduce  the  irregularities  so  that 
the  English  reader  may  judge  for  himself  how  far  the 
text  may  have  suffered. 

Ezekiel  uses  the  Ktnah  in  his  "Laments"  over 
Tyre  (xxvi.  I7ff.;    xxvii. ;    xxviii.   12  ff.)  and  over 


Ill]  THE  p:iNAH  43 

Pharaoh  (xxxii.  2ff.).  In  all  these  cases  we  might 
have  expected  mashal,  "parable"  or  " taunt-song ,' 
rather  than  Kinah.  Ezekiel  seems  to  have  been 
specially  fond  of  the  mashal.  See  his  parable  of  the 
Great  Eagle  (xvii.  1 — 10) ;  of  the  seething  pot  (xxiv. 
3 — 5)  and  also  of  the  mother  and  daughter  (xvi.  44  f.). 
This  style  of  teaching  must  have  been  popular  with 
some  (Ezek.  xxxiii.  30 — 32),  while  others  said,  with 
contempt,  "Is  he  not  a  speaker  ofmashals?"  (xx.  49; 
in  the  Hebrew,  xxi.  5). 

The  style  of  Ezekiel  is  somewhat  diffuse,  but  I  am 
not  sure  that  his  real  gift  as  a  poet  has  been  appre- 
ciated. He  was  a  young  man  when  the  mighty 
Empire  of  Assyria  fell  (606  B.c.)  never  to  rise  again. 
The  battle  of  Carchemish  in  the  following  year 
shattered  the  power  of  Egypt ;  and  Ezekiel  held 
up  before  Pharaoh  the  warning  of  Assyria's  fall  in 
a  fine  poem  written  in  a  somewhat  irregular  Kinah 
measure  as  follows : 

(Ezek.  xxxi.  3ff.) 

3  Behold  Asshur  |  a  cedar  in  Lebanon  |  beauteous  in  branches, 

shadowy  with  leafage  |  and  lofty  in  height ; 
And  amid  the  thick  boughs  |  his  top-shoot  ar6se. 

4  Waters  enlarged  him  |  the  deep  made  him  grow. 

It  ran  with  its  rivers  all  round  |  the  place  of  his  planting, 
And  sent  forth  its  little  canals  j  to  all  trees  of  the  field : 

5  Therefore  his  stature  was  higher  |  than  all  trees  of  the  field, 
And  his  boughs  became  many  |  his  branches  grew  long  |  as 

he  shot  forth  from  m4ny  waters. 


44  ASSYRIA  AND  BABYLON  [CH. 

6  In  his  bodghs  there  did  nest  |  all  birds  of  the  heaven ; 
And  under  his  branches  there  gendered  |  all  blasts  of  the 

field; 
And  there  dwelt  in  his  shadow  |  the  wh61e  of  the  nations. 

7  So  he  grew  fair  in  greatness,  |  in  length  of  his  branches  |  be- 

cause that  his  root  reached  |  to  waters  so  m6,ny. 

8  There  eclipsed  him  no  cedars  |  in  Garden  of  God. 

The  fir-trees  were  not  like  his  boughs,  |  nor  were  chesnut 

trees  like  to  his  branches. 
No  tree  in  the  Garden  of  G6d  |  could  compare  unto  him  in 

its  beauty. 

The  latter  part  of  this  poem  which  depicts  the 
fall  of  Assyria  to  Hades  is  singularly  like  the  Kinah 
poem  on  the  fall  of  Babylon  which  we  must  consider 
at  greater  length. 

A  fine  example  of  the  Kinah  is  this  taunt-song 
(Is.  xiv.  4  ff".)  written  by  an  unknown  poet,  c.  549  B.C., 
not  long  before  the  fall  of  Babylon. 

The  text  of  this  poem  is  well-nigh  perfect.  The 
only  change  I  have  suggested  is  to  transpose  verses 
18,  19. 

The  natural  divisions  of  the  poem  occur  after 
verses  6,  8,  11,  15,  17.  There  is  a  progress  and 
development  of  thought  which  might  justify  us  in 
speaking  of  these  divisions  as  strophes.    Thus : 

Strophe  I,  vv.  4 — 6.     The  fall  of  Babylon  ascribed 

to  Jahve. 
Strophe  II,  vv.  7,  8.    The  world  of  nature  rejoices. 
Strophe  III,  vv.  9 — 11.     Grim  joy  in  Hades. 


Ill]  THE  KINAH  46 

Strophe  IV,  vv,  12 — 15.    The  Nations  take  up  the 

taunt-song. 
Strophe  Y,  vv.  16,  17.     Hades  takes  up  the  taunt. 
Strophe  VI,  vv.  19 — 20.     The  Nations  conclude 

with  the  moral. 

Thus  strophe  VI  answers  to  strophe  IV,  strophe  V 
to  strophe  III,  while  strophes  I  and  II  form  a  general 
introduction.  The  portion  of  the  poem  referring  to 
Hades  is  worthy  of  Dante.  We  see  the  King  of 
Terrors  rousing  up  the  shades  from  their  shadowy 
thrones  to  greet  the  latest  failure  of  earth's  ambitions. 
We  note  also  the  "narrow"  look  with  which  the  newly 
awakened  shades  regard  him,  as  though  unable  to 
trust  their  eyesight  (v.  16). 

(Is.  xiv.  4ff.) 

4    Thou  shalt  take  up  this  proverb  (i.e.  taunt-song)  against  the 
King  of  Babylon  and  thou  shalt  say : 

Strophe  I. 

Ah !  the  T^sk-master  n6w  is  at  r6st ! 
The  G61d-city  (?)  resteth  ! 
6    Jkhxe  hath  broken  the  staff  of  the  wicked ; 

The  sceptre  of  rulers  ; 
6    That  smote  the  Peoples  in  wrath; 
With  ceaseless  smiting. 
That  ruled  the  Nations  in  anger; 
With  unsparing  pursuit. 


46  THE  FALL  OF  BABYLON  [oh. 

Strophe  IL 

7  All  6arth  is  at  r^st  and  is  quiet; 

They  burst  into  s6ng  ! 

8  The  fir-trees  themselves  rejoice  over  thee; 

The  cedars  of  Lebanon  ; 
No  hewer  hath  come  up  against  us, 
Since  thou  art  laid  d6wn. 

Strophe  III. 

9  H&des  bel6w  is  in  tumult  for  thee; 

To  welcome  thy  coming ; 
For  th^e  it  arouseth  the  shades; 

All  the  he-goats  of  earth. 
It  m^keth  to  rise  from  their  thrones, 

All  the  kings  of  the  Nations. 

10  [,They  dll  of  them  answer  and  say  unto  thee] 
So  thou  too  art  weakened  as  we. 

Made  like  unto  us? 

11  Thy  pride  is  brought  down  unto  H4des ; 

The  thrum  of  thy  viols. 
Beneath  thee  corruption  is  strewn: 

And  the  worm  is  thy  c6ver. 

Strophe  IV. 

12  H6w  art  thou  fallen  from  Heaven, 

Thou  Star  of  the  Dawn ! 
(H6w  art  thou)  hewn  to  the  ground. 

That  didst  weaken  the  Nations! 

13  Thou,  that  didst  say  in  thine  heart, 

I  will  mount  unto  Heaven. 
Ab6ve  the  stars  of  God 

I  will  s6t  up  my  thr6ne ; 


Ill]  THE  KfNAH  47 

And  will  sit  in  the  Mount  of  Assembly  ^ ; 
The  Recess  of  the  North. 

14  I  will  mount  on  the  heights  of  the  clouds ; 

Will  be  like  the  Most  High. 

15  Yet  to  H^des  it  is  thou  art  brought 

The  Recess  of  the  Pit. 

Strophe  V. 

16  They  that  see  thee  look  narrowly  6n  thee; 

Upon  thee  they  ponder. 
Is  this  the  man  that  troubled  earth, 
That  shook  the  kingdoms? 

17  That  made  the  world  a  wilderness, 

Its  cities  wasted? 
That  never  freed  prisoner  h6meward! 

Strophe  VI. 

19  And  tho6  art  cast  forth  from  thy  gr4ve, 

As  a  sh6ot  that's  rejected ! 
Clothed  with  the  mangled  slain,  that  go  d6wn  to  the  st6nes 
of  the  Pit, 

As  a  carcass  that's  trampled. 

18  One  and  k\\,  the  kings  of  the  Nations, 
Lie  down  in  honour,  each  in  hds  house. 

20  Not  with  them  art  thou  joined  in  thy  burial ; 
Since  thy  land  thou  destr6yedst, 

Thy  people  didst  sl4y. 
Unh6noured  for  ever  remaineth 
The  s6ed  of  ill-d6ers. 

The  dirge  of  the  captives  (Ps.  cxxxvii.)  is,  as  we 
might  expect,  written  for  the  most  part  in  the  Kinah 
measure.    The  text  is  a  little  uncertain  in  v,  Z^  where, 

^  i.e.  of  the  gods. 


48  THE  CAPTIVES'  DIRGE  [ch. 

also,  the  metre  fails  us.  We  are  glad  to  feel  that 
vv.  7 — 9  were  not  written  by  the  author  of  this  lovely 
Psalm  which  is  complete  in  itself  (vv.  1 — 6).  The 
reader  should  notice  how  the  word  "joy"  in  v.  6^ 
responds  to  "joy"  in  v.  3^  Any  personal  joy  was 
impossible  when  Jerusalem  was  in  ruins.  Verse  6* 
responds  to  v.  3\  The  voice  of  song  would,  if  at- 
tempted, mean  that  "the  tongue  would  cleave  to 
the  palate."  Verse  5  responds  to  v.  2.  Should  the 
harp  be  taken  down  the  right  hand  itself  would 
refuse  its  office. 

Thus  the  parallelism  of  thought  completes  itself 
in  two  strophes. 

(Ps.  cxxxvii.) 

1  By  Babylon's  waters  we  sat,  and  we  wept, 

As  we  thought  upon  Zlon. 

2  There  on  the  willows  within  her 

We  hanged  our  h^rps. 

3  For  th6re  our  captors  demanded 

The  language  of  s6ng ! 
Our  wasters (?)... (asked)  j6y  ! 
"Sing  us  6ne  of  Zion's  Songs." 

4  H6w  should  we  sing  the  S6ng  of  J4hve 

On  Land  of  strangers  ? 

5  Could  t  forget  thee  0  Jerusalem 

My  right  hand  should  forget! 

6  My  tongue  should  cleave  to  my  p6,late 

If  unmindful  of  thee  ! 
If  I  set  not  Jerusalem  higher 

Than  best  of  my  joy. 


Ill]  THE  KtNAH  49 

Before  leaving  the  Kinah  we  will  give  an  illus- 
tration of  the  way  in  which  it  is  occasionally  modified. 
The  reader  will  note  the  grief  expressed  by  the  short 
lines. 

(Is.  i.  21  AT.) 

H6w  is  she  turned  to  a  harlot ! 

The  faithful  City ! 
Fiill  (she  was)  of  justice,  |  righteousness  dwelt  in  her — 

But  n6w — assassins  ! 
Thy  sflver  is  c6me  to  be  dross ;  |  Thy  wine  is  murdered  with 

water  ; 
Thy  nobles  are  rebels ;  |  Companions  of  thieves : 
Each  6ne  of  them  loveth  the  bribe,  |  And  pursueth  the  gift. 
The  6rphan  they  judge  not ;  |  the  cause  of  the  widow  |  comes 
not  unto  them! 

These  examples  may  sufiice,  especially  as  we  shall 
have  occasion  to  consider  at  some  length  the  Kinah 
measure  in  the  Book  of  Lamentations  in  our  chapter 
which  treats  of  Alphabetical  Poetry. 

It  may  be  well,  however,  to  give  one  example 
of  the  way  in  which  the  study  of  Hebrew  metre  may 
eventually  help  us  to  determine  the  original  text. 
For  this  purpose  I  take  Ps.  xlii.,  xliii.,  which  is  in  the 
Kinah  measure  with  a  refrain  in  the  measure  3  +  3. 
This  Psalm  has  been  carefully  analysed  by  Prof. 
Rothstein  {Grundzuge  des  hebrdischen  Rhythmus), 
and  I  shall  to  some  extent  follow  his  analysis, 
though  my  conclusions  differ  from  his. 

K.  4 


50  METRE  AND  TEXT  [oh. 

The  first  line  (v.  2)  is  in  diiferent  measure  (viz. 
2  +  2  +  2  +  2).  The  question  therefore  arises :  Is  it 
intended  as  a  heading  for  the  Psalm?  I  have  re- 
tained the  word  "bleateth"  because  the  Hebrew  word 
is  onomatopoetic,  denoting  the  voice  of  the  thirsty 
stag.  We  have  no  word  in  English  for  this.  But 
the  English  reader  has  a  right  to  know  that  the  Poet 
applies  this  strong  word  to  the  cry  of  his  soul. 

As  bleateth  the  stag  |  for  the  channels  of  waters,  |  so  bleateth 
my  s6ul  |  for  Thee,  O  God. 

It  is  obvious  that,  in  this  line  of  four  parts,  the 
third  answers  exactly  to  the  first,  and  the  fourth 
to  the  second.  I  therefore  suggest  that,  if  it  be  the 
heading  of  the  whole  Psalm,  it  should  imply  four 
sti'ophes  answering  to  one  another  in  this  order. 

Our  next  step  must  be  to  omit  vv.  5, 9  and  w?.  1, 2* 
of  Ps.  xliii.  which  read  as  prose  ;  also  xliii.  2^  which 
is  a  repetition  of  xlii.  10^ 

With  these  omissions  the  Psalm  falls  into  four 
equal  strophes  which  answer  to  one  another  in  the 
order  suggested  by  the  heading.    Thus  : 

(Ps.  xlii. — xliii.) 

2  As  bleateth  the  stag  |  for  the  channels  of  waters,  |  so 

bleateth  my  soul  |  for  Thee,  0  G6d  | 

Strophe  I  {''As  Ueateth  the  stag'').   Scheme  3+2:  Refrain  3+3. 

3  My  soul  is  athirst  for  Jahve — 

For  the  God  of  my  life ! 


Ill]  THE  kINAH  61 

When  shall  I  c6me  and  beh61d 

The  Presence  of  Jahve  ? 
4       Tears  have  been  mine  for  f6od, 

By  d^y  and  by  night, 
While  they  s^y  to  me  all  day  16ng, 

Wh^re  is  thy  God  ? 

Refrain. 

6  Why  so  depressed,  O  my  s6ul  ? 

And  why  shouldst  thou  m6an  within  me? 
Wait  for  Jahve  till  I  th^nk  Him, 
As  the  help  of  my  face,  and  my  G6d. 

Strophe  II  (^^F(yr  the  channels  of  waters"). 

7  Within  me  my  s6ul  is  cast  down, 

Since  I  celebrate  Thee 
From  a  L^nd  of  J6rdan  and  Hermons — 
A  mountain  of  Mitzor! 

8  Where  d6ep  is  crying  to  deep. 

For  the  sound  of  Thy  torrents ! 
The  wh61e  of  Thy  breakers  and  billows 
Have  g6ne  over  me. 
{Repeat  Refrain.) 
Strophe  III  ("iSb  bleateth  my  souV). 

10  I  would  s^y  to  the  G6d  of  my  R6ck, 

Why  shouldst  Thou  forget  me? 
Why  should  I  mournfully  w^lk 

Through  oppression  of  foes  ? 

11  'Tis  as  murder  within  my  b6nes 

When  mine  enemies  revfle  me; 
When  they  s^y  to  me  §,11  day  long 
Where  is  thy  G6d  ? 

12  {Repeat  Refrain.) 

4—2 


62  THIRST  FOR  GOD  [OH. 

Strophe  IV  {''For  Thee,  0  God''). 
(Ps.  xliii.) 

3  Send  forth  Thy  Light  and  Thy  Truth ; 

Let  them  lead  me  6n : 
To  Thy  h61y  Mount  let  them  bring  me — 
Unto  Thy  Tabernacles. 

4  Till  I  c6me  to  the  Altar  of  Jahve — 

To  the  G6d  of  my  joy ; 
And  I  gleefully  thank  Thee  with  h^rp, 
0  J^hve  my  G6d ! 

5  {Repeat  Refrain.) 

The  Psalm  cannot  be  understood  without  reference 
to  Joel  i.  20  and  Job  vi.  15 — 20,  for  it  is  not  the 
thirst  of  the  stag  but  the  disappointed  thirst  when 
it  finds  the  channel  dry.  So,  also  it  is  not  the  thirst 
of  the  soul  but  the  disappointed  thirst  when  the 
channels  of  grace  yield  no  joy  (strophes  II  and  III). 
But  the  refrain  insists  upon  the  truth  that  these 
channels  of  grace  will  again  flow  with  joy,  and  the 
fourth  strophe  sees  the  realization  of  this  hope. 

The  passage  in  Joel  to  which  we  refer  may  be 
translated  as  follows  : 

(Joeli.  19  f) 
J4hve  to  Thee  I  cry — 

For  fire  hath  devoured  the  pastures  of  the  wilderness ; 
And  fl^me  hath  enkindled  all  the  trees  of  the  field. 
The  beasts  of  the  field  are  each  bleating  unto  Thee. 
For  dried  are  the  ch^^nnels  of  w4ter ; 
And  fire  hath  devoiired  the  pastures  of  the  wilderness. 


Ill]  THE  KINAH  63 

Though  the  regular  form  of  the  Ktnah  is  3  +  2  we 
have  already  seen  that  it  admits  of  modifications. 
One  further  instance  may  be  given  from  the  beautiful 
elegy  on  Moab  (Is.  xvi.  9flf.)  which  Isaiah  seems  to 
have  quoted  from  an  ancient  source  (see  v.  13). 

To  understand  this  elegy  the  reader  must  remember 
that  the  word  hedad  which  properly  signifies  the 
joyous  "vintage-shout"  may  also  signify  the  "battle- 
shout"  so  that  Jeremiah  (xlviii.  33)  speaks  of  a  "hedad 
that  is  no  hedad."  In  our  elegy  the  word  is  used  in 
both  senses. 

The  metre  is  2  +  2  +  2  with  two  lines  of 
2  +  2  +  2  +  2. 

Therefore  I  weep  |  with  the  weeping  of  J4zer  |  for  Sfbmah's 

vine. 
I  bedew  thee  with  tears  |  He8hb6n  EPaleh  |  for  on  harvest  and 

frditage  |  the  hedad  is  fallen  ! 
G6ne  is  all  gladness  |  and  joy  from  the  tillage  |  the  vineyards 

are  s6ngless,  |  not  ringing  with  shout. 
The  wine  in  the  presses  |  no  treader  now  treads ;  |  the  hedad 

is  silenced ! 
So  my  b6wels   for  M6ab  |  are  sounding  as  h^rps,  |  and  my 

s6ul  for  Kir-heres. 

There  is  a  play  upon  the  name  "Kir-heres,"  as 
in  Is.  xix.  18  ;  the  "City  of  the  Sun"  is  become  the 
"City  of  destruction."  The  whole  passage  also 
contains  instances  of  alliteration  of  which  Isaiah  was 
peculiarly  fond  and  which  it  is  impossible  to  reproduce 
in  a  translation. 


CHAPTER    IV 

ACROSTIC,  OR  ALPHABETICAL,  POETRY 

The  poems  in  the  Bible  which  are  directly 
alphabetical  are  the  following :  Pss.  ix.  and  x.  (im- 
perfect), XXV.,  xxxiv.,  xxxviL,  cxi.,  cxii.,  cxix.,  cxlv. ; 
Prov.  xxxi.  10 — 31 ;  Lam.  i.,  ii.,  iii.,  iv.  At  first  sight 
the  arrangement  of  lines  or  verses  under  the  order 
of  successive  letters  of  the  alphabet  might  seem 
beneath  the  dignity  of  the  Sacred  Writings.  Nor 
is  it  sufficient  to  regard  such  arrangement  as  an  aid 
to  memory.  I  hope  to  shew  that  it  had  a  deeper 
significance,  and  that  it  indicates  a  division  in  strophes 
which  has  not  yet  been  recognised. 

The  Book  of  Lamentations  consists  of  five  chapters. 
These  chapters  are  of  dififerent  date  and  of  difierent 
structure.  The  first  chapter  is  generally  recognised 
to  be  the  oldest ;  each  verse  consists  of  three  lines, 
the  first  line  of  each  verse  commencing  with  the 
corresponding  letter  of  the  alphabet.  The  metre  is 
elegiac,  i.e.  Kinah  measure,  the  poem  being  a  lament 
over  the  death  of  Israel  as  a  Nation. 


CH.  IV]         ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  65 

We  give  a  translation  of  the  first  two  verses  as 
a  specimen : 

(Lam.  i.  If.) 

X       H6w  doth  she  sit  all  alone  | 

the  (once)  populous  City ! 
H6w  hath  she  c6me  to  be  widowed  | 

once  great  among  nations ! 
Sh^  that  was  queen  among  kingdoms  | 

now  come  under  tribute ! 
^       She  bitterly  weeps  in  the  night  | 

with  her  tears  on  her  cheek ! 
She  hath  not  a  one  to  bring  comfort  | 

out  of  ^11  of  her  lovers  ! 
Her  friends  are  turned  traitors  towards  her  | 

they  have  c6me  to  be  Enemies! 

The  second  chapter  is  similar  to  the  first  except 
for  the  fact  that  the  order  of  two  of  the  letters 
(fi  and  J^)  is  transposed.  The  third  chapter  is  sup- 
posed to  be  the  latest.  It  has  three  lines  to  each 
letter  of  the  alphabet ;  a  verse  has  been  assigned 
to  each  letter,  thus  giving  66  verses  though,  properly, 
there  should  have  been  only  22.  Here  again  we 
note  that  the  letter  3  (vv.  46 — 48)  comes  be/ore  the 
letter  y  (vv.  49 — 51),  and  this  is  the  case  also  in  the 
fourth  chapter.  We  begin  to  suspect  that  this  repre- 
sents the  original  order  of  the  Hebrew  alphabet ;  we 
therefore  turn  back  to  chapter  I  and  we  find  that 
vv.  16  and  17  which  represent  y  and  3  respectively 
would  give  better  sense  if  transposed.    We  are  thus 


66  LAMENTATIONS  III  [ch. 

confirmed  in  our  belief  that,  at  the  time  when  these 
chapters  of  Lamentations  were  composed,  the  order 
of  the  letters  was  ^,  y,  not  J^,  fi  as  at  present.  We 
shall  see  the  importance  of  this  when  we  come  to  the 
earlier  group  of  Alphabetical  Psalms.  Chapters  IV 
and  V  have  two  lines  to  a  verse  but  chapter  V  differs 
in  that  it  is  not  alphabetical,  and  the  lines  are 
shorter. 

Thus  the  Book  of  Lamentations  consists  of  five 
Elegies,  the  oldest  of  which  may  date  almost  from 
the  age  of  Jeremiah.  These  elegies  were  appointed 
for  use  on  the  9th  of  Ab  when  the  Jewish  Church 
bewailed  the  destruction  of  the  first  Temple.  I  sug- 
gest that  they  were  composed,  at  different  dates,  for 
use  on  that  Fast-day. 

We  will  now  translate  Lam.  iii.  retaining  as  far  as 
possible  the  rhythm  of  the  Hebrew. 

(Lam.  iii.) 

1  ^    I  am  the  m&n  that  hath  16oked  on  affliction — 

by  the  rod  of  His  wrath. 

2  {^    He  16d  me  and  made  me  to  walk 

in  darkness,  not  light. 

3  {<    Against  me  He  c6nstantly  turneth  His  h^nd — 

^11  the  day. 

4  )3    He  hath  worn  out  my  flesh  and  my  skfn — 

broken  my  bones. 

5  ]3     He  hath  builded  and  compassed  me  round — 

with  gall  and  with  travail. 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  57 

6  ]3    He  hath  m4de  me  to  dwell  in  dark  places — 

as  the  4ge-long  dead. 

7  y     He  hath  hedged  me  aroiind,  that  I  cannot  go  f6rth* — 

He  hath  weighted  my  ch^in. 

8  y     Yea,  though  I  cry  out  and  shout — 

He  shuts  out  my  prayer. 

9  ^     He  hath  hedged  my  ways  (as  with)  hewn-stone — 

He  hath  twisted  my  p^ths. 

10  "7    He  is  to  me  as  a  be^r  in  w^it — 

as  a  lion  2  in  coverts. 

11  *7     My  w4y8  He  hath  turned,  He  hath  pulled  me  in  pieces — 

hath  rendered  me  desolate. 

12  T    He  b^nt  His  b6w,  and  He  set  me 

as  the  mark  for  the  ^rrow^ 

13  n     He  hath  caused  to  6nter  my  reins 

the  shafts  of  His  quiver. 

14  ^    I  became  a  derision  to  k\l  the  Peoples — 

their  song  all  the  day. 

15  n    He  hath  filled  me  with  bitterness,  m4de  me 

drunken  with  w6rmwood. 

16  *\     And  He  br^ke  my  teeth  with  gravel — 

fed(?)  me  with  ^.shes. 

17  )     Thou  hast  cast  out  my  s6ul  from  peace — 

I  forgat  (all)  prosperity. 

18  *\     And  I  s4id,  my  glory  hath  perished— 

and  my  h6pe  all  from  Jahve. 

19  I     I  remember  my  aflBlction  and  my  86rrow — 

wormwood  and  gall. 
1  Cf.  Job  xix.  8,  XXX.  20.  2  JqI,  j,  iq^ 

3  Cf.  Job  vii.  20,  xvi.  12  f. 


68  LAMENTATIONS  III  [CH. 

20  t     My  s6ul  hath  them  still  in  rem6mbrance— 

is  humbled  within  me ! 

21  I     This  one  thing  I  l^y  to  my  heart — 

therefore  I  h6pe. 

Israel  trusts  in  the  Covenant  of  Creation  (Jer. 
xxxi.  35—37 ;   Is.  Ixvi.  22). 

22  n    J^hve's  mercies  are  not  ^nded^ — 

His  compassions  f4il  not. 

23  n     They  are  new  as  the  mornings  come  round — 

Great  is  Thy  faithfulness. 

24  n     My  portion  is  Jahve,  saith  my  s6ul— 

I  therefore  aw4it  Him. 

25  t3    Good  to  His  patient  ones  is  J^hve — 

to  the  soul  that  doth  seek  Him. 

26  to    G6od,  one  should  h6pe  and  be  still — 

for  salvation  of  Jahve. 

27  tD    Good,  for  man  that  he  should  bear — 

the  y6ke  in  his  youth. 

28  *>      Let  him  sit  alone  and  be  silent— 

since  He  laid  it  up6n  him. 

29  ^      Let  him  put  his  mouth  in  the  dust— 

if  perchance  there  be  h6pe. 

30  ^      Let  him  giwe  his  cheek  to  the  smiter^— 

be  filled  with  reproach. 

31  3    For  He  will  not  cast  off  for  ever— 

the  Lord  (will  be  gracious). 

32  3    ^^^  though  He  cause  grief  He  will  pity- 

as  His  mercy  abounds. 

1  See  Versions.  '^  Is.  1.  6. 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  69 

33  ^    For  'tis  not  from  His  heart  He  afflicteth 
.  or  grieveth  mankind. 

34  7    That  h6  (the  enemy)  should  crush  under  f6ot 

I  all  the  bound  ones  of  earth — 

35  7    That  he  should  pervert  human  justice 

J  in  the  face  of  the  Highest — 

36  7    That  he  wrong  a  man  in  his  c6venant — 

The  Lord  cannot  see ! 

37  t2    Who  is  there  that  spake  and  it  was— 

if  the  Lord  did  not  6rder  ? 

38  f2    Should  there  not  come  from  the  mouth  of  the  Hfghest- 

Evil  and  good  ? 

39  1^    What  is  man  that  liveth,  to  murmur?— 

a  m^n  for  his  sins? 

40  i      Let  us  search  and  try  our  ways — 

and  return  unto  Jahve. 
Let  us  lift  our  hearts,  palms  uplifted,— 

to  God  in  the  Heavens. 
It  is  we  that  transgressed  and  rebelled 

and  Thou  hast  not  pardoned! 

Thou  hast  hedged  Thee  with  4nger  and  followed  us  hard— 
Thou  hast  slain  without  pity. 

Thou  hast  hedged  Thee  around  with  thick  cloud — 
that  prayer  cannot  pass. 

Thou  hast  m4de  us  as  dr6ss  and  as  refuse — 
in  the  midst  of  the  Peoples. 

46  t)    They  g4pe  on  us  open  mouthed — 

even  all  our  enemies. 

47  S    Fear  and  snare  are  ours — 

desolation,  destruction. 


41 

:i 

42 

i 

43 

D 

44 

D 

45 

D 

60  LAMENTATIONS  III  [ch. 

48  t)    Mine  eye  runs  fountains  of  w^-ters — 

for  the  hurt  of  my  People. 

49  W    Mine  eye  runs  d6wn  and  ceaseth  not — 

with  no  intermission. 

50  y    Till  He  look  f6rth  and  behold- 

Even  Jahve  from  Heaven. . 

51  y    Mine  6ye  affecteth  my  soul— 

for  the  daughters  of  my  City. 

62    )^    They  hunted  me  s6re  like  a  bird — 

my  causeless  Enemies. 

53    ^^    They  ctit  oflf  my  life  in  the  dungeon— 

and  placed  a  stone  on  me. 

64  ^f    Waters  flowed  6ver  mine  head — 

I  said,  I  am  ended. 

65  p    I  called  Thy  N^me,  O  Jahve— 

'  from  the  depths  of  the  ddngeon. 

56  p  My  voice  Thou  hast  heard,  Oh  close  not  Thine  6ar — 
'  from  my  breathing,  my  cry. 

57  p  Thou  wast  near  in  the  d^y  that  I  called  Thee— 
'  Thou  saidest,  Fear  n6t. 

68    *^    Lord,  Thou  hast  pleaded  the  cause  of  my  soul — 
hast  ransomed  my  life. 

59  "^    Thou,  Jkhwe,  hast  witnessed  my  wronging — 

give  me  now  justice ! 

60  '^    Thou  hast  seen  all  their  vengeance — 

their  devlsings  against  me. 

61  ^   Thou  hast  h^ard  their  reproach,  0  J^hve — 

their  device  all  against  me. 

62  {Jf    The  t41k  and  the  thought  of  mine  Adversaries — 

against  me  all  d^y. 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  61 

63  ^    Behold !  when  they  sit,  when  they  rise — 

f  am  their  s6ng. 

64  n    Render  them  their  recompense,  O  Jahve — 

like  the  work  of  their  hands. 

65  n    ^^ve  to  them  blindness  of  heart — 

Thy  curse  upon  them. 

66  p    Pursue  them  in  wrath  and  destroy  them — 

from  beneath  Jahve's  heavens. 

At  first  sight  this  poem  seems  to  consist  of 
alternations  of  sorrow  and  hope  without  order  or 
arrangement :  but  if  we  look  closer  we  find  that  the 
natural  breaks  occur  after  the  letters  1,  7>  ^)  H.  This 
gives  three  long  strophes  of  6  letters  each  closed 
by  a  short  strophe  of  4  letters.  In  other  words,  the 
arrangement  of  the  strophes  corresponds  with  the 
law  of  the  Kinah  measure  (3  +  2),  in  which  the  poem 
is  written.  This,  of  course,  may  be  accidental.  We 
shall  test  it  further.  Meanwhile  it  is  suggestive. 
The  subjects  of  the  four  strophes  may  be  given  as 
follows : 

Strophe  I  (6  letters  ^^  to  1).     Complaint  against 

God. 

Strophe  II  (6  letters  T  to  7).    Resignation     and 

hope. 

Strophe  III  (6  letters  12  to  V).     Complaint  against 

God  modified  hy 
resignation. 


62  LETTERS  AND  STRUCTURE  [ch. 

Strophe  IV  (4  letters  p  to  H).     God     has    heard, 

and  will   repay 
the  enemy. 

If  we  name  these  strophes  A,  B,  C,  D,  respectively, 
then,  if  the  poem  be  studied,  it  will  be  seen  that 
C  answers  to  A  and  D  to  B.  Besides  this  larger 
division  into  strophes  the  reader  will  notice  that  the 
letter  h  has  become  the  middle  letter  of  the  alphabet. 
He  should  therefore  compare  the  three  5<  lines  with 
the  three  D  lines  and  so  throughout  the  alphabet. 
This  will  throw  great  light  on  the  poem.  Note 
especially  the  relation  between  i«C  and  12  (vv.  1 — 3 
with  37—39). 

^  and  D  (vv.  7—9  with  43—45). 

1  and  ^  (vv.  10—12  with  46—48). 

1  and  )i  (vv.  16—18  with  52—54). 

The  six  letters  T  to  7  (vv.  19 — 36)  have  to  cor- 
respond with  the  four  letters  p  to  D  (vv.  55 — 66). 
It  should  be  noted  especially  how  vv.  34 — 36  are 
answered  by  the  curse  in  vv.  64 — 66. 

We  will  now  test  our  conclusions  by  seeing  how 
far  they  apply  to  the  Alphabetical  Psalms.  For  this 
purpose  we  choose  Ps.  xxxvii.  as  being  one  of  the 
most  perfect  specimens  of  the  Alphabetical  Psalms  of 
the  First  Collection. 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  63 

(Ps.  xxxvii.     Scheme  3  +  3.) 
Strophe  I. 

1  X    Fret  not  thyself  at  ill-doers,  |  Grudge  not  at  w6rkers  of 

wrong. 

2  For  as  gr^ss  they  are  speedily  mown,  |  And  like  the 

green  herbage  they  wither. 

3  "2    Trdst  in  J4hve  and  do  good ;  |  Dwell  in  the  Land,  feed 

on  His  Faith. 

4  And  delight  thee  in  J^hve,  |  that  H6  may  grant  th6e  | 

the  desire  of  thy  he^^rt. 

5  y     Dev61ve  upon  J^hve  thy  way ;  |  Trust  Him,  and  He  will 

d6  it. 

6  He  will  bring  out  thy  right  as  the  light,  |  And  thy 

cause  as  the  noonday. 

7  T     Be  still  for  Jahve ;  wait  for  Him  ! — 

Fret  not  at  him  that  prospers,  |  At  the  m^n  that  effects 
his  designs. 

8  n     Cease  from  6,nger;  leave  wrath;  |  Fret  not;  'tis  merely 

for  harm. 

9  For  ill-doers  sh^U  be  cut  6ff,  |  While  the  waiters  on 

Jahve  are  they  |  that  inherit  the  L4nd. 

10  r*)     Yet  but  a  little  and  the  wicked  is  n6t !  |  Thou  may'st 
p6nder  his  place,  but  he  is  not! 
While  the  humble  inherit  the  Land  |  And  delight  in 
abundance  of  peace. 

Strophe  II. 

12  I     The  wicked  laid  plans  for  the  righteous,  |  And  gnashed 

at  him  with  his  teeth. 

13  The  Lord  will  laugh  at  him,  |  For  He  sees  that  his  d4y  is 

c6ming. 


64  LETTERS  AND  STRUCTURE  [ch. 

14  n    The  wicked  have  drawn  their  8w6rd,  |  Have  b6nt  their 

bdw — 
To  c4st  down  the  poor  and  n6edy,  |  To  slaughter  those 
upright  of  w^y. 

15  Their  sw6rd  shall  pierce  thine  own  heart  ]  And  their 

b6ws  shall  be  broken. 

16  \^    A  righteous  man's  little  is  better,  j  Than  abundance  of 

many  wicked. 

17  For  the  ^rms  of  the  wicked  shall  be  br6ken,  I  While 

J4hve  uph61deth  the  righteous. 

18  >     J^hve  noteth  the  days  of  the  upright,  |  So  their  heritage 

lasts  for  ever. 

19  They  ^re  not  shamed  in  evil  times,  |  And  in  d&,ys  of 

dearth  they  are  filled. 

20  ^     But  wicked-ones  perish — 

And  J^hve's  enemies,  |  like  the  beauty  of  the  meadows,  | 
Are  past  in  sm6ke  and  gone. 

21  17    The  wicked  b6rroweth  and  payeth  not;  1  While  the 
righteous  is  gracious  and  giving. 

For  His  blessed  inherit  the  Land;  |  His  cursed  ones 
^re  cut  oflF. 

Strophe  III. 

23  f2    'Tis  from  J^hve  the  steps  of  a  man  are  established,  ] 

When  his  way  gives  Him  pleasure. 

24  Though  he  fall  he  will  not  be  cast  6flf,  |  For  Jahve  up- 

h61deth  his  h4nd. 

25  ^     Young  I    wks  and  now  am  old  |  Yet  never  saw  the 

righteous  left  |  [Or  his  seed  begging  bread. . .]  1  gloss. 

26  He  is  ever  gracious  and  lendeth ;  |  And  his  seed  is  for 

blessing. 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  65 

27  D     Turn  from  6vil  and  d6  the  g6od,  |  And  dwell  thou  for 

6ver. 

28  For  J4hve  Idveth  justice,  |  And  will  never  desert  His 

saints. 

30  ^     The  mouth  of  the  righteous  meditates  wisdom,  |  And 

his  tongue  will  be  talking  of  judgement. 

31  In  his  he4rt  is  the  Lkw  of  his  God,  |  So  his  st6ps  do  not 

falter. 

28^   y    Sinners  are  destroyed  [?  text]...  |  The  s6ed  of  the  wicked 
is  cut  off. 
The  righteous  inherit  the  L4nd,  |  And  dwell  therein 
for  ever. 

The  structure  of  the  poem  requires  that  S  should 
come  before  J^  just  as  it  does  in  Lamentations.  I  have 
therefore  transposed  these  lines. 

Strophe  IV. 

32  >f     The  wicked  sets  watch  for  the  righteous,  |  And  seeketh 

to  sl^y  him — 

33  J^hve  will  not  leave  him  in  his  hand,  |  Nor  condemn 

him  when  judged — 

34  p     W^it  thou  for  Jahve  and  keep  His  W^y,  |  To  inherit  the 

L^nd  will  He  raise  thee. 
Thou  shalt  j6y  in  the  wicked's  extinction. 

35  ^     I  have  seen  the  wicked  tyrannically  strong,  (  Outspreading 

as  Lebanon  cedars. 

36  I   passed — and  16,  he  was  gone  ;  |  I  sought   him — he 

could  not  be  found! 

37  ty    N6te  the  perfect  (man),  regard  the  upright,  |  For  the 

m4n  of  peace  has  a  future : 
K.  5 


66  LETTERS  AND  STRUCTURE  [CH. 

38  While  transgressors  are  wh611y  destr6yed ;  |  The  future  of 

the  wicked  is  extinct. 

39  n     The  salvation  of  the  righteous  is  from  J^hve,  |  Their 

str6nghold  in  time  of  distress. 

40  For  'tis  Jahve  that  helps  and  delivers  them ;  i  Delivers 

from  sinners  and  saves  them,  |  Because  they  confided 
in  Him. 

The  structure  of  this  Alphabetical  Psalm  is  in 
short  lines  of  3  beats,  but  it  is  better  to  arrange  it  in 
longer  lines  of  6  beats  with  caesura,  for  the  most  part, 
in  the  middle.  The  reason  for  this  will  be  seen  in 
w.  4,  7*,  20,  34^,  40,  where  the  arrangement  is  varied. 

The  letters  of  the  alphabet  are  divided  into  four 
groups,  with  the  letter  f2  as  the  middle  letter,  exactly 
as  in  Lam.  iii.,  so  that  the  Psalm  falls  into  four  corre- 
sponding strophes.  But  whereas  in  Lam.  iii.,  where 
the  JS^tnah  measure  was  3  +  2,  we  had  three  long 
strophes  and  one  short  one,  here,  where  the  measure 
is  3  +  3  the  strophes  are  of  equal  length  of  5  letters 
each.  But,  since  there  are  22  letters  in  the  Hebrew 
alphabet,  and  the  letter  )t}  must  always  be  the  central 
letter,  the  author  of  our  Psalm  had  two  superfluous 
letters  in  the  first  half,  i.e.  the  letters  *)  and  7  at  the 
end  of  strophes  I  and  IL  He  might  have  omitted 
these  letters  altogether,  as  did  the  original  author 
of  Pss.  XXV.  and  xxxiv.  (see  my  notes),  in  which  case 
they  would  probably  have  been  supplied  by  a  later 
editor;    or  he   might   himself  have  written  these 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  ^1 

verses  (10  and  21)  with  the  intention  of  adding  no 
new  thought. 

In  my  opinion  the  concluding  lines  of  vv.  9,  20, 
which  remind  us  of  alexandrines,  formed  the  original 
close  of  strophes  I  and  II  respectively  ;  I  have 
therefore  placed  vv,  10,  21  in  square  brackets.  The 
reader  should  now  carefully  compare  the  four 
strophes,  not  regarding  the  verses  (which  have  no 
ancient  authority),  but  the  Hebrew  letters.  He  will 
see  that  the  closest  relationship  is  between  the  five 
letters  of  strophe  I  and  those  of  strophe  III,  and 
also  between  the  five  letters  of  strophe  II  and  those 
of  strophe  IV.  Thus  the  relationship  of  the  strophes 
is  identical  with  that  of  Lam.  iii. 

The  main  subject  of  the  Psalm  is  the  religious 
difficulty  caused  by  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked. 
The  subject  of  strophe  I  (see  esp.  vv.  5,  6)  is  the 
command  to  cast  the  burden  of  this  difficulty  upon 
God.  Strophe  III  answers,  letter  by  letter,  to 
strophe  I  but  adds  the  thought  of  active  work  (cf. 
esp.  vv.  27,  28  with  vv.  5,  6). 

Strophe  II,  in  its  central  thought  {v.  16),  asserts 
that  in  spite  of  the  poverty  and  low  estate  of  the 
righteous,  their  condition  is  better  than  that  of  their 
triumphant  enemies.  Strophe  IV  takes  up  this 
thought  of  strophe  II,  letter  by  letter,  and  comes  to 
the  conclusion,  which,  as  we  shall  see,  did  not  satisfy 
Job,  that  a  sudden  destruction  which  will  overtake 

5—2 


68  PSALMS  CXI,  CXII  [CH. 

the  wicked  (vv.  35,  36)  will  justify  the  ways  of  God 
with  men. 

Before  leaving  the  subject  of  Alphabetical  poetry, 
we  must  take  one  example  from  the  Psalms  of  the 
Third  Collection,  which  we  naturally  expect  to  be  of 
later  date  than  the  poems  we  have  already  considered. 
We  select  the  pair  of  Psalms  cxi.  and  cxii.  which, 
indeed,  form  one  Psalm  in  two  strophes. 

(Ps.  cxi.) 

Scheme  3  +  3.    Subject,  The  Good  God. 

^    Jahve  I  praise  with  whole  he^rt,  |  ^    In  communion  of 

siints  and  assembly. 
y      GreSit  are  the  works  of  J^hve ;  |  ^  Exquisite  to  ^1  that 

choose  them. 
n     Splendour  and  majesty  is  His  w6rk ;  |  1  His  righteousness 

abideth  for  6ver. 
I      A  Name  hath  He  made  by  His  w6nders ;  |  H   "  Gracious 

and  Merciful"  is  J§,hve. 
^     He  giveth  food  to  his  fearers;  |  *i   He  remembereth  His 

Covenant  for  ever.  . 

^     His  power  He  shewed  for  His  People ;  |  7  Giving  them  the 

heritage  of  Gentiles. 

f2     The  w6rk8  of  His  h^nds  are  v6rity;  |  ^  All  of  his  precepts 

are  sure. 
J3     They  are  stayed  for  ever  and  ever ;  |  y  Being  wrought  in 

truth  and  right. 
^     Redemption  He  sent  to  His  People;  |  ^f  He  enjoined  His 

Covenant  for  ever. 

P    H61y  and  feared  is  His  Name. 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  *    69 

*1     The  beginning  of  wisdom  is  [ J^hve's]  fear ;  |  ^  Discretion  is 
theirs  that  practise  it. 

n    His  praise  abldeth  for  ever. 

(Ps.  cxii.) 
Scheme  3  +  3.    Subject,  The  Good  Man. 

X    0  happy  the  fearer  of  J^hve,  |  ^  That  greatly  delights  in 

His  Laws. 
^      Mighty  on  earth  is  his  seed;  |  *7  The  generation  of  saints 

shall  be  blessed, 
n    Riches    and  wealth    in    his   hotise ;  |  ^    His   righteousness 

abideth  for  ever. 
]      His  light  is  risen  in  darkness  ;  |  H  "  Gracious  and  merciful " 

is  the  righteous. 
^     He  is  good  gracious  and  giving;  |  *>   He  maintaineth  his 

pr6mises  rightly.  . 

'2     He  remaineth  unmoved  for  ever;  |  7  He  shall  be  for  an 

endless  N4me. 

J2    At  6vil  tidings  he  feareth  n6t ;  |  ^  Fixed  is  his  helirt  upon 

J4hve. 
5     Stayed  is  his  he^rt,  unfearing ;  |  y  Till  he  see  his  desire  on 

his  foes. 
^     He  scattered,  he  g4ve  to  the  needy;  |  *^  His  righteousness 

abideth  for  ever. 

p    His  h6m  is  exalted  with  h6nour. 

*^     The  wicked  sees  and  is  grieved ;  |  ^   He  gn^sheth  his  teeth 
and  pineth. 
n    The  desire  of  wicked  (men)  perishes. 

Each  of  these  Psalms  is  complete  in  itself.    Each 
is  divided  into  two  Parts  or  strophes  at  the  letter  ft 


70  STRUCTURE  OF  [ch. 

as  in  the  case  of  other  alphabetical  arrangements. 
Thus,  if  we  analyse  Ps.  cxi.  we  see  that  in  Part  I 
the  central  thought  is  the  Covenant  Name  of  God 
as  ^^  Gracious  and  Merciful"  in  letters  T>  H.  If  we 
refer  to  the  corresponding  line  in  Part  II  we  see 
that  it  reads,  under  letter  p,  ^^Holy  and  feared  is 
His  Name."  Indeed  the  six  lines  (12  letters)  of 
Part  I  correspond  with  the  six  lines  (10  letters)  of 
Part  11.  The  same  is  true  of  Ps.  cxii.  which  speaks 
of  the  good  man.  The  central  thought  of  Part  I  is 
given  by  the  letters  T,  H  viz.  that,  out  of  his  darkness, 
a  light  springs  up  for  him  because  he  is  gracious 
and  merciful.  The  corresponding  line  in  Part  II  is 
given  by  the  letter  p  "ffis  horn  is  exalted  with 
honour."  The  connexion  in  Hebrew  between  the  horn 
and  rising  light  may  be  seen  from  Ps.  cxxxii.  I7f. ; 
Ex.  xxxiv.  29  f.,  35  ;  Hab.  iii.  4. 

If,  in  each  of  these  Psalms,  the  reader  will  carefully 
compare  Part  I  with  Part  II,  line  by  line,  he  will  see 
that  these  Parts  are  really  strophes ;  so  that  they 
ought  to  be  sung  antiphonally.  But  though  each 
Psalm  is  complete  in  itself  the  full  meaning  is  only 
brought  out  when  we  read  the  two  Psalms  together, 
line  by  line.  The  good  man  (Ps.  cxii.)  is  a  reflex  of 
the  Good  God  (Ps.  cxi.),  so  much  so  that  the  same 
words  may  be  applied  to  each  (see  letters  \  H,  ^). 
The  liberality  of  God  (Ps.  cxi.  letters  3,  ^)  is  shewn 
in  that  gift  of  Redemption  which  makes  His  Covenant 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  71 

eternal.  The  liberality  of  the  good  man  (Ps.  cxii., 
letters  fi,  V)  is  shewn  in  gifts  of  mercy  which  make 
his  righteousness  eternal  (cf.  2  Cor.  ix.  9  ff.).  Thus, 
while  each  Psalm  has  two  strophes,  the  two  Psalms 
are  strophical  the  one  to  the  other,  and  should  always 
be  sung  together. 

We  may  now  sum  up  the  results  at  which  we 
have  arrived  in  our  study  of  the  alphabetical  poems. 
In  every  case  the  alphabet  has  been  divided  at  the 
letter  ^,  thus  giving  a  grouping  of  ten  letters,  ten 
being  the  sacred  number  of  the  Priest  Code  and  of 
the  Covenant,  The  allusions  to  the  Covenant  in 
these  poems  is  very  frequent.  They  all  belong  to 
the  "Wisdom"  literature  and  are  didactic  in  their 
tone.  In  the  earlier  alphabetical  poems  (Lam.  and 
Pss.  of  First  Collection)  the  letter  3  came  before  J^. 
In  the  later  poems  (Pss.  of  Third  Collection)  the  order 
of  the  alphabet  was  as  at  present. 

Since  the  Hebrew  alphabet  has  22  letters  it  is 
evident  that  the  letter  ^,  which  is  the  13th  letter 
cannot  be  the  "middle  letter,"  and  yet  we  find  that  it 
was  so  reckoned  by  Talmudic  writers  who  thus  make 
the  first  (X),  middle  (^),  and  last  letter  (H)  of  the 
alphabet  (which  in  Hebrew  spell  the  word  "tridh") 
to  stand  for  "the  Seal  of  God"  (Jerus.  Tal.  Sank.  i. 
Quoted  by  Buxtorf,  s.v.  r\f2^)'  This  I  believe  has 
never  been  explained.  I  suggest  that  the  solution 
is  to  be  found  in  the  arrangement  of  the  Alphabetical 


72  THE  GOOD  WIFE  [cH. 

(Covenant)    Psalms   which    we    have    ah-eady  con- 
sidered. 

The  latest  of  the  alphabetical  poems  in  the  Bible 
is  the  poem  on  the  "good  wife"  (Prov.  xxxi.  10 — 31) 
which  probably  belongs  to  the  Greek  period.  It 
consists  of  22  lines,  each  commencing  with  the  cor- 
responding letter  of  the  Hebrew  Alphabet,  but  it  is 
not  divided  at  the  letter  t^.  It  is  not  easy  to  see 
any  law  on  which  it  is  constructed,  except  that  the 
two  last  lines  sum  up  the  moral,  in  the  nature  of 
a  Chorus,  thus  making  the  poem  itself  consist  of 
20  lines,  or  two  tens,  closing  with  the  lines  p,  1 
which  certainly  seem  to  correspond  with  the  opening 
lines  of  the  poem. 

(Prov.  xxxi.  10—31.) 

X    Who  can  attain  a  brave  wife  ?  |  Priceless   she   is   beyond 

rubies. 
^     Her  husband's  heai-t  may  trust  her  |  and  l^ck  no  manner 

of  gain. 
^      She  requites  him  6nly  with  good,  |  k\\  the  d^ys  of  her  life. 
*^     She  seeks  out  wool  and  flax  |  and  works  with  willing  hands. 
^     She  is  like  the  ships  of  the  trader,  |  she  bringeth  her  food 

from  af^r. 
•^       She  rises  while  yet  it  is  night  |  and  supplieth  the  needs 

of  her  honied 
]      She  considers  a  field  and  buys  it:  |  with  the  frdit  of  her 

hands  it  is  planted  2. 

1  A  probable  gloss  adds  "  and  a  laio  for  her  maidens.'^ 

2  The  text  has  ''she  plantetha  vineyard."  This  destroys  the  metre. 


IV]  ALPHABETICAL  POETRY  73 

n     She  gfrdeth  her  lofns  with  might,  |  and  m^keth  strong  her 

arms, 
to     She  perceiveth  her  traffic  succeed  ;  |  her  lamp  is  unquenched 

by  night. 
>      She  layeth  her  hands  to  the  spindle  |  and  her  p^lms  hold 

the  distaff. 
3     She  openeth  her  palms  to  the  poor  |  and  stretcheth  out 
.  hands  to  the  needy. 

7     No  fear  of  the  snow  for  her  household  |  for  her  household 

is  double-clad. 
f^     She   maketh   her  tapestry  -  coverings ;  |  her  clothing   fine- 
linen  and  ptirple. 
^      Her  husband  is  known  in  the  gates ;  |  where  he   sltteth 

with  the  elders  of  the  land. 
^     She  worketh  garments  and  selleth ;  |  and  girdles  she  gives 

to  the  merchant, 
y      So  strong  so  fine  her  clothing  |  she  laughs  at  coming  time. 
£j     She  openeth  her  mouth  with  wisdom,  |  with  kindly  16re  on 

her  tongue. 
>f     She   looks  well  to   the   ways  of  her  house  |  and  6ats  no 

bread  of  Idleness. 
p     Her  sons  rise  up  and  bless  her,  |  and  her  husband  praises 
'  her  (s4ying) 

•^     "Many  daughters  are  brave  |  but  thou  hast  excelled  them 

all." 

Chorus  speaks. 

{y    Gr^ce   and  beauty  are  fleeting  and  vain,  ]  a   God-fearing 

wife  is  the  6ne  to  be  praised. 
f\    Give  her  the  fruit  of  her  hands,  |  while  her  deeds  tell  her 

praise  in  the  gates. 


CHAPTER    V 

THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING' 

The  religion  of  the  Jew  was  an  historical  religion. 
It  was  wrought  out,  little  by  little  (Heb.  i.  1),  in  the 
experiences  of  the  Nation.  And  certainly  there  never 
has  been  a  Nation  upon  earth  that  might  more  fitly 
be  termed  "the  Suffering  Nation."  But  it  is  equally 
true  to  say  that  there  never  has  been  a  Nation  that 
has  had  throughout  its  history  the  same  consciousness 
of  a  Divine  call,  of  a  Divine  sonship.  The  problem 
that  Israel  had — I  do  not  say  to  solve,  but — to  set 
forth  before  the  world,  was  how  to  reconcile  the 
truth  of  Israel's  sonship  with  the  fact  of  Israel's 
sufierings. 

From  the  time  when  Amos  (c.  760  B.C.)  uttered 
his  noble  paradox  (Amos  iii.  2),  down  to  the  time 
of  Christ,  the  poets  and  prophets  of  Israel  have 
striven  in  divers  ways  to  face  the  problem,  Why 
should  the  righteous  suffer  ?  In  the  present  Chapter 
we  shall  consider  some  of  the  attempts  that  have  been 
made  to  solve  this  problem. 

But  it  is  impossible  to  do  this  until  the  English 
reader  shall  come  to  realise  that  modern  individuality 


CH.  V]    THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING        75 

must  not  be  read  into  the  Psalter,  where  the  speaker 
is  Israel  and  where  "I"  and  "we"  may  constantly 
interchange  as  in  Num.  xx.  19  f.  "And  the  children 
of  Israel  said  unto  him  (Edom),  We  will  go  up  by  the 
high  way :  and  if  we  drink  of  thy  water,  I  and  my 
cattle,  then  will  I  give  the  price  thereof :  let  me  only, 
without  (doing)  anything  (else),  pass  through  on  my 
feet.  And  he  said.  Thou  shalt  not  pass  through.  And 
Edom  came  out  against  him...."  This  characteristic 
of  Hebrew  thought  has,  under  God's  Providence, 
served  a  great  end,  and  it  is  most  unfortunate  that 
it  should  be  so  constantly  disregarded,  even  by 
theologians. 

We  must  now  briefly  review,  as  far  as  possible 
in  historical  order,  the  various  answers  which  have 
been  given  to  the  question,  Why  should  the  righteous 
Nation  sufier  ? 

Deuteronomy  (622  B.C.)  appears  to  promise  to 
Israel  every  kind  of  temporal  prosperity.  "In  the 
event  of  obedience,  Israel  will  be  'set  on  high'  above 
all  nations  (xxvi.  19,  xxviii.  1),  and  enjoy  material 
superiority  over  them"  (xv.  6^  xxviii.  12^,  13). 
[Driver,  Deuteronomy,  p.  33.] 

The  School  of  Deuteronomy  expresses  itself  in 
such  language  as  that  of  the  Alphabetical  Psalms, 
e.g.  Ps.  xxxvii.  25  : 

I  have  been  young  and  now  am  old, 
Yet  never  saw  the  righteous  left, 
Or  his  seed  begging  bread. 


76  JEREMIAH'S  EXPERIENCE  [ch. 

This  teaching  of  course  involves  an  eternal  truth, 
but  it  might  easily  become  misleading,  and  was  soon 
found  to  need  supplementing. 

The  death  of  good  king  Josiah  in  the  battle  of 
Megiddo  (609  B.c.)  and  the  times  that  followed  gave 
true  men  cause  to  think.  Then  it  was  {c.  ^00  B.C.) 
that  Habakkuk  pleaded  his  difficulty  with  God  (Hab. 
i.  13) :  "Thou  that  art  of  purer  eyes  than  to  behold 
evil,  and  that  canst  not  look  upon  wrong,  how  is  it 
Thou  canst  look  upon  the  treacherous-ones  and  bold- 
est Thy  peace  when  the  wicked-one  (i.e.  the  Chaldean) 
swalloweth  up  the  man  that  is  more  righteous  than 
he  (i.e.  Israel)?"  Habakkuk  found  no  answer  to  his 
difficulty  except  to  trust  and  wait  (Hab.  ii.  1 — 4). 

The  life-task  of  Jeremiah  (626 — 586  B.C.),  the  man 
of  sorrows,  was  to  prove  from  his  own  experience, 
that  suffering  was  a  way  of  service,  and  did  not  imply 
the  anger  of  God.  His  own  deep  consciousness  of  sin 
and  infirmity  never  hid  from  him  the  certainty  that 
God  had  called  him  (i.  5ff.)  to  be  His  "Servant."  He 
shrank  from  the  hard  task  of  this  service,  e.g.  viii.  23  ff. 
(E.V.  ix.  1  ff ). 

6h  that  my  head  were  waters, 

And  mine  eye  a  fountain  of  tears, 

That  by  d&,y  and  by  night  I  might  weep, 

For  the  sl^in  of  the  Datighter  of  my  People ! 

6h  that  I  h^d  in  the  Wilderness 

A  w%farer's  lodge! 


V]         THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         11 

That  f  might  forsake  ray  People, 

And  g6t  me  gone  from  them. 
For  they  are  adulterers  all, 

An  assembly  of  traitors  ! 

(xi.  19.) 

W6e  is  me  for  my  hurt !  grievous  my  wound ! 

And  I  said,  This  is  sickness,  indeed;  I  must  bear  it. 

(xii.  1.) 

Righteous  art  Thou  0  J4hve, 

Yet  would  I  plead  with  Thie ; 

And  would  talk  with  Thee  of  judgements : 

Why  prospers  the  way  of  the  wicked  ? 

Why  are  traitors  all  of  them  h^ppy  ? 

There  were  times  when  Jeremiah  rebelled  against 
his  task  (xv.  10,  17  f.;  xx.  7ff.)-  But  the  thought 
that  he  was  God's  Servant  helped  him  through,  till 
God's  word  became  not  a  "fire"  (xx.  9)  but  the  "joy 
and  rejoicing  of  his  heart"  (xv.  16).  Like  Dante 
{Purg.  XXVII.)  he  passed  through  the  fire  and  found 
Paradise  beyond. 

This  personal  experience  Jeremiah  transferred  to 
the  People  that  he  loved. 

As  God  had  called  him  from  all  eternity  (i.  5  ff.) 
in  spite  of  unworthiness,  so  God  has  called  Israel — 
(xxxi.  2,  see  context). 

With  eternal  love  have  I  loved  thee 

And  therefore  with  mercy  have  drawn  thee. 


78  JEREMIAH'S  EXPERIENCE  [CH. 

The  Prophet  well  knew  the  difficulty  of  this : 

(xiii.  23.) 

Can  Ethiop  change  his  skin, 

Or  leopard  his  sp6ts  ? 
Then  ye  shall  be  fitted  for  good 

that  are  wonted  to  6vil. 

Compare  also  xvii.  9,  xxx.  12.  But  the  very 
difficulty  made  him  the  more  certain  that  God  must 
act.  Thus  the  Prophet  who  knew  most  of  sin  and 
of  sorrow  reached  the  highest  point  of  Old  Testament 
Revelation  in  the  certainty  of  the  New  Covenant. 

(xxxi.  33.) 

I  do  s6t  My  L4w  within  them, 
And  on  their  hearts  I  will  write  it; 
And  I  will  be  theirs  as  God, 
While  they  shall  be  Mine  as  People. 

But  as,  in  Jeremiah's  case,  sufferings  were  the 
mode  of  service  through  which  he  found  God,  so  also 
it  must  be  in  the  case  of  the  Nation :  and  I  would 
call  special  attention  to  the  fact  that  Jeremiah  is  the 
first  to  apply  the  title  "  Thy  Servant''  to  Israel  (see 
Driver,  L.O.T.  p.  246),  and  that  he  does  so  in  these 
Chapters  which  speak  of  the  New  Covenant.    Thus  : 

(xxx.  10  f.) 
"And  thou,  My  Servant  Jacob,  fear  not,  saith  Jahve  ; 
dread  not,  O  Israel,  for  it  is  I  that  am  saving  thee 


V]  THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         79 

from  afar.... Though  I  make  a  full  end  of  all  the 
Nations  whither  I  have  scattered  thee,  yet  with  thee 
I  will  not  make  a  full  end." 

So,  then,  while  Jeremiah  gives  no  formal  answer 
to  the  question,  Why  do  the  People  of  God  suffer? 
his  own  experience  suggests  a  very  practical  answer  : 
Suffering  is  Service — Israel  is  (like  the  Prophet)  God's 
Servant 

Of  a  life  beyond  the  grave  the  Prophets  had  no 
certain  knowledge.  The  Captivity  was  the  death  of 
Israel  and  it  was  a  mighty  venture  of  faith  to  believe 
that  the  "  dead  bones  "  could  once  more  live  (Ezek. 
xxxvii.  1 — 14). 

Before  considering  the  problem  of  suffering  in  the 
Book  of  Job  we  will  give  a  translation  of  Ps.  xxxix. 
which,  more  than  any  other  Psalm,  is  full  of  the 
language  and  thought  of  Job.  [See  Psalms  in  Three 
Collections,  pp.  155 — 160.] 

I  have  followed  Wellhausen  in  omitting  v.  10  which 
seems  to  have  been  a  gloss  on  v.  3.  I  have  also 
placed  the  Refrain  at  the  end  of  v.  7  instead  of  v.  6, 
where  it  interrupts  the  sense. 

The  division  of  the  Psalm  into  three  strophes  is 
suggested  by  v.  13  "Jfi/  prayer^'  "My  cry"  "My 
tears,"  in  inverted  order. 


80  PSALMS  AND  JOB  [CH. 

(Ps.  xxxix.) 

(My  tears^  v.  13.) 

2  I  said,  I  must  h6ed  my  w4ys,  |  not  to  sin  with  my  tongue. 
I  must  keep  my  mouth  with  a  bridle,  |  While  the  wicked  is 

still  in  my  presence. 

3  I  was  utterly  dumb,  |  not  speaking  a  w6rd ;  I  arid  my  gri6f 

grew  intense. 

4  With  heart  hot  within  me,  |  fire  kindled  with  thought;  |  so 

I  spake  with  my  tongue. 

(My  cry,  v.  13.) 
6    Sh6w  me,  0  J^hve,  mine  end,  |  and  my  p6rtion  of  dlys  what 
it  is :  I  I  would  know  how  fleeting  I  am. 

6  Beh61d  as  a  span  |  Thou  hast  made  my  d^ys ;  |  and  my  lifetime 

is  nothing  before  Thee  ! 

7  Man  walks  in  mere  show;  |  They  are  vainly  in  tdrmoil;  |  He 

piles  and  he  knows  not  who  gathers ! 

A   MERE   BREATH   IS   MAN'S  LOT. 

(My  prayer,  v.  13.) 

8  And  now.  Lord,  why  do  I  w4it  ?  |  —My  h6pe  is  in  Th^e! 

9  Free  me  from  all  my  transgressions ;  |  Make  me  not  a  repr6ach 

for  the  f6ol. 

11  Rem6ve  from  6ff  me  Thy  stroke;  |  'Neath  the  weight  (?)  of 

Thine  hand  I  consCime. 

12  With  requital  of  sin  |  Thou  punishest  m4n,  |  Dost  w^te  his 

delights  like  the  moth. 

A  MERE   BREATH  IS  MAN's  LOT. 

13  Hear  my  prayer,  0  Jahve ; 
Give  6ar  to  my  cry; 

Be  not  silent  to  my  tears; 


V]         THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         81 

For  f  am  a  guest  with  Th6e, 
Like  k\l  my  fathers  a  s6joiiriier. 
14    Leave  me  space  to  take  c6mfort;  |  Before  I  depart  and  I  ^m 

not! 

We  now  turn  to  the  Book  of  Job.  The  problem 
that  the  writer  had  to  solve  was  exactly  that  of  the 
Prophet  Habakkuk — Why  should  Israel,  righteous 
by  comparison,  be  of  all  Nations  the  Suffering 
Nation  ? 

To  solve  the  problem  he  introduces  a  man  "perfect 
and  upright"  (i.  1)  amongst  men.  In  Heaven  God 
bears  witness  to  him  (i.  8)  and  the  Accuser  is  allowed 
to  put  him  to  the  utmost  test  (i.  12,  ii.  6).  Then, 
when  every  conceivable  trouble  and  affliction  has 
fallen  upon  Job,  his  three  friends  who  represent  the 
"wisdom"  literature  of  the  day  come  to  comfort  him. 
This  "wisdom"  had,  as  we  have  seen,  its  origin  in 
the  eudaemonism  of  Deuteronomy,  of  the  Alphabetical 
Psalms,  of  the  Book  of  Proverbs,  and  other  similar 
works.  The  writer  intends  to  allow  this  "Wisdom" 
to  speak  for  itself,  and  to  find  what  it  is  worth  by 
applying  it  to  the  suiferings  of  a  righteous  man. 
Job's  three  friends  no  doubt  represent  different 
phases  of  this  "wisdom,"  but  for  our  present  purpose 
it  will  suffice  to  consider  them  as  one. 

The  Poem  begins  at  chapter  III. 

The  friends  at  first  insinuate,  and  afterwards 
openly  declare,  that  Job's  sufferings  must  be  due  to 
some  great  and  flagrant  sin. 

K.  6 


82  JOB  [CH. 

Remember ;  who  ever  hath  perished  being  innocent  ? 
Or  wh6n  were  righteous  men  cut  6ffi? 

Compare  also  v.  2  with  Ps.  xxxvii.  1,  2,  7. 

Temporal  prosperity  must  be  the  portion  of  the 
good  (v.  19 — 27),  otherwise  where  is  God's  justice  ? 

It  is  true  that  a  wicked  man  (like  Job)  may  seem 
to  prosper  for  a  time,  but  this  only  means  a  sudden 
and  terrible  fate  that  is  coming  upon  him  and  on  his 
children  (v.  3  if.).  Add  to  this  the  terrors  of  an  evil 
conscience  (xv.  20  ff.,  xviii.  5 — 21). 

All  this  is  worked  out  with  great  power  and 
doubtless  it  represented  the  orthodox  teaching  of  the 
day.  But  Job  will  have  none  of  it.  Such  arguments 
are  mere  words  (vi.  26,  xvi.  3).  He  had  hoped  for 
comfort  from  his  friends  but  they  have  proved  utterly 
false ;  vi.  15—20. 

My  br6ther8  are  deceitful  as  a  torrent; 
Like  the  channel  of  the  brooks  they  ch&,nge : 
Which  run  d^rk  because  of  the  ice, 
And  the  sn6w  that  hides  itself  in  them. 
They  no  sooner  are  w^rm  than  they  v4nish; 
When  hot  they  are  dried  from  their  pl4ce. 
The  paths  of  their  way  are  diverted ; 
They  ascend  and  perish  in  void. 
The  caravans  of  Teman  looked  for  them ; 
The  c6mpanies  of  Sheba  expected  them — 
They  were  shamed  because  of  their  trust ; 
They  c^me  there  and  blushed  for  sh4me. 

^  Job  iv.  7 :  cf.  Ps.  xxxvii.  25. 


V]  THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         83 

While  freely  admitting  the  general  fact  of  sinful- 
ness (ix.  2,  xiii.  26),  Job  absolutely  refused  to  admit 
the  contention  of  his  friends  that  his  sufferings  were 
the  result  of  some  grievous  hidden  sin.  He  calls  God 
to  witness  that  it  is  not  so. 

(ix.  32f.) 

Were  He  6ne  like  myself  I  would  Answer  Him, 
We  would  c6me  together  in  judgement. 
But  there  fs  betwfxt  us  no  umpire, 
That  can  \ky  his  hand  on  us  b6th. 

(xiii.  15.) 

Lo,  He  may  sl4y  me,  I  cannot  h6pe; 
Yet  my  w4ys  I  maintain  to  His  Face. 
He  Himself  should  be  mine  for  salvation ; 
For  no  hypocrite  c6mes  in  His  Presence. 

Rather  than  admit  what  he  knows  to  be  untrue  he 
would  charge  God  with  injustice. 

(xix.  6.) 
Kn6w  then  that  G6d  has  wr6nged  me. 

(xxvii.  3  ff) 

As  16ng  as  my  spirit  is  in  me, 

And  the  breath  of  God  in  my  n6strils, 

My  lips  shall  n6t  speak  untruth, 

And  my  t6ngue  shall  not  utter  falsehood, 

Far  be  it  from  me  to  pronounce  you  right; 

Till  I  die  I  will  never  reject  mine  integrity. 

6—2 


84  JOB  [CH. 

Job's  apparent  claim  to  sinlessness  is  exactly  that 
of  Israel  in  Pss.  xvii.  1 — 5,  xviii.  20  ff.,  xxvi.,  xliv.  17  ff., 
Ixix.  7ff.,  ci.  In  other  words  it  is  that  of  the  "Servant" 
of  God. 

As  to  the  assertion  of  the  "friends"  that  prosperity 
is  the  lot  of  the  righteous,  Job  positively  asserts  the 
very  opposite.    Thus : 

(xxi.  7.) 

7  Why  do  the  wicked  have  life? 

They  grow  61d,  wax  mighty  in  strength. 

8  Their  seed  is  established  before  them; 
And  their  6ffspring  while  they  yet  live. 

9  Their  houses  are  s^fe  from  f6ar ; 
And  n6  rod  of  God  is  on  them. 


12       They  take  up  the  tabret  and  harp ; 
And  rejoice  at  the  sound  of  the  lute. 

17       How  6ft  is  the  lamp  of  the  wicked  extinguished  ? 
(Is  it  true)  that  their  fkte  comes  up6n  them  ? 
The  pangs  He  distributes  in  ^nger  ? 

To  Job  the  world  is  full  of  sadness :  the  bitter 
cry  of  the  workers  (chapter  XXIV)  reminds  us  of 
the  Song  of  the  Shirt. 

12       From  out  of  the  city  men  grokn, 

And  the  soul  of  the  slain  crieth  odt ; 
Yet  G6d  imptiteth  no  wr6ng! 

The  pathos  of  it  all  was  intensified  by  the  fact 
that  to  Job  the  grave  was  utterly  dark. 


v]  THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING        85 

(xiv.  7ff.) 

7  For  the  tree  there  may  be  hope; 
Though  Med  it  ag^in  may  sprout; 
And  its  tender  branch  not  fail. 

8  Though  its  root  grow  old  in  the  earth, 
And  its  stock  may  die  in  the  ground. 

9  Yet  through  scent  of  the  water  it  buds, 
And  puts  forth  its  boughs  as  when  young. 

10  But  a  hero  must  die  and  bb  wasted! 
Man  gives  up  the  ghost,  and  where  fs  he? 

11  Waters  will  have  vanished  from  the  sea; 
The  Rfver  will  have  wlisted  and  be  dried; 

12  But  man  lies  th^re  and  riseth  not ; 
"While  h6aven  exists  they  w^ke  not^ 

Nor  can  they  be  roused  from  their  sleep. 

See  also  vv,  16 — 21. 

Yet,  in  spite  of  the  sufferings  of  the  present,  the 
falseness  of  his  friends,  and  the  darkness  of  the  future, 
Job  was  sure  of  God  ;  and  because  of  this,  his  words 
gain  meanings  far  beyond  his  thought. 

(xvi.  19  ff.) 

In  the  Heaven,  even  now,  is  my  Witness, 
In  high-heaven  my  Testimony. 
With  mockers  for  friends! 
Unto  God  doth  mine  eye  drop  t6ars. 
For  a  Pleader  for  m^n  with  G6d, 
A  m4n  for  his  fallow ! 

Thus,  in  spite  of  some  hasty  words,  Job,  like 
Jeremiah,  is  faithful  to  the  end ;  and  poetic  justice 


86  LIGHT  BREAKS  FOR  JOB  [oh. 

requires  that  light  should  break.  The  light  comes 
through  a  Divine  Voice  (chapter  XXXVIII  f.)  which 
appeals,  not  as  arguments  to  the  mind,  but  as  light 
to  the  whole  being.  (Compare  the  conclusion  of 
Tennyson's  Two  Voices.)  Driver  (L.O.T.)  well  says 
of  these  chapters :  "  The  first  speech  of  Jehovah 
transcends  all  other  descriptions  of  the  wonders  of 
creation  or  the  greatness  of  the  Creator,  which  are 
to  be  found  either  in  the  Bible  or  elsewhere.  Parts 
of  2  Isaiah  (e.g.  c.  40)  approach  it ;  but  they  are 
conceived  in  a  different  strain,  and,  noble  as  they 
are,  are  less  grand  and  impressive.  The  picturesque 
illustrations,  the  choice  diction,  the  splendid  imagery, 
the  light  and  rapid  movement  of  the  verse,  combine 
to  produce  a  whole  of  incomparable  brilliancy  and 
force." 

Before  offering  a  translation  of  portions  of  this 
speech  I  must  ask  the  reader  to  remember  that  the 
object  of  the  Divine  Voice  is  not  to  impress  Job  with 
the  omnipotence  of  God  :  for  he  well  knew  this,  and 
nothing  could  go  beyond  the  power  and  beauty  with 
which  he  has  already  pictured  the  Divine  omnipotence 
in  chapter  XXXVI  ending  with  the  words 

Lo  these  are  but  parts  of  His  w^ys ; 

The  mere  whisper  about  Him  that's  heard: 

But  the  thunder  of  His  might,  who  can  know? 

If  the  Divine  Voice  had  taught  nothing  more  than 
omnipotence  it  would  have  been  no  revelation.    But 


V]         THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         87 

it  suggests  throughout,  a  Divine  purpose  and  care 
lying  behind  the  power.  And  this  is  just  what  the 
sufferer  needs  to  rebuke  his  faithless  fears. 

(Job  xxxviii.  2  ff.) 

GodPs  Voice  out  of  the  Storm. 

2  Who  IS  it  that  darkeneth  counsel 

With  words  without  knowledge  ? 

3  Gird  now  thy  loins  like  a  m&n: 

I  will  ^sk :  do  thou  answer. 

Earth  implies  a  purpose. 

4  Where  wert  thou  when  earth  was  founded? 
Declare  if  thou  skillest  to  kn6w. 

5  Who  appointed  the  measures  she  owns? 
Or  who  stretched  the  Hne  up6n  her? 

6  Her  foundations,  on  wh&,t  were  they  settled? 
Or  who  laid  her  comer  st6ne  ? 

7  While  the  morning-stars  sang  in  ch6ru8 
And  the  s6ns-of-God  shouted  for  joy ! 

The  Sea  proclaims  the  Creatot^s  purpose  in  curbing  it. 

8  When  He  shtit  up  with  d6ors  the  Sea 
That  burst,  as  it  were,  from  a  w6mb  ? 

9  When  I  m^de  the  cloud  its  vesture; 
And  darkness  its  swaddling-b4nd  ? 

10  When  I  clenched  on  it  My  decree. 
And  appointed  it  b^rs  and  doors  ? 
[and  said] 

11  Thus  f^r  shalt  thou  c6me  and  no  further; 
And  here  shall  thy  proud  waves  be  stayed  ? 


88  LIGHT  BREAKS  FOR  JOB  [ch. 

The  creation  of  light  implies  the  victory  of  all  good. 

12  Couldst  thou  ever  give  charge  to  the  Morning; 
Or  teach  the  Dawn  its  place  ? 

13  How  to  gr^sp  the  c6niers  of  earth 
Till  the  wicked  be  shaken  thereout? 

14  It  is  changed  like  the  clay  of  a  seal ; 

Things  stand  out  as  though  clothed  with  a  garment! 

15  While  their  light  is  withheld  from  the  wicked, 
And  the  kno.  that  is  lofty  is  broken. 

The  Under-world,  a  storehouse  for  good  ends. 

16  Hast  thou  entered  the  m^zes  of  Sea  ? 
Or  walked  the  recesses  of  the  Deep  ? 

17  Have  the  gates  of  Death  been  revealed  to  thee? 
Canst  thou  see  the  gates  of  Death-shadow  ? 

18  Canst  thoti  comprehend  to  earth's  bounds? 
Tell  then  if  thou  knowest  her  wholly. 

19  Where  is  the  w^y  where  light  dwelleth  ? 
And  darkness,  where  is  its  place? 

20  That  thou  shouldst  conduct  it  to  bounds 
And  shouldst  know  the  paths  to  its  dwelling ! 

21  Dost  thou  know  it  as  being  then  b6rn  ? 
Is  the  number  of  thy  days  so  many  ? 

22  Hast  thou  entered  the  storehouse  of  8n6w  ? 
And  the  st6rehouse  of  hail,  hast  thou  seen  it  ? 

23  Which  for  time  of  stress  I  am  keeping, 
For  the  day  of  b&ttle  and  war. 

24  Which  is  the  way  light  is  parted, 

When  it  scatters  the  st6rmblast  on  earth? 

25  Who  6pened  the  channel  of  cloudburst. 
And  the  way  for  the  flash  of  the  thunder  ? 

26  Causing  rain  on  14nd  without  man. 
On  uninhabited  wilderness ! 


V]    THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING    89 

27  S6aking  the  desolate  w4ste 

Till  it  spring  with  germs  of  grkss ! 

28  Hath  the  rain  a  father  ? 

Or  who  hath  begotten  the  dew-drops  ? 

29  The  fee  ?  from  whose  w6mb  came  it  forth  ? 
The  hoar-frost  of  heaven  ?  who  gendered  it  ? 

30  The  waters  are  hidden  like  stone 
And  the  fkce  of  the  d6ep  is  congealed. 

27i^  Upper-world  also  declares  the  purpose  of  its  Maker. 

31  Canst  thou  fasten  the  bands  of  the  Pleiades  ? 
Or  16osen  the  fetters  of  Orion  ? 

32  Canst  bring  each  constellation  in  season? 
Canst  guide  Arcttirus  with  his  sons  ? 

33  Dost  thou  know  the  statutes  of  heaven  ? 
Canst  thou  fix  each  Influence  over  earth  ? 

34  Canst  thou  lift  up  thy  voice  to  the  clouds, 
That  abundance  of  w4ter  may  cover  thee  ? 

35  The  lightnings?  canst  send  that  they  go? 
That  they  Answer  thee,  Here  we  ^re? 

36  Who  gave  them  their  inward  wisdom? 
Or  imparted  a  mind-like  intelligence? 

The  poem  passes  on  to  depict  God's  care  mani- 
fested in  the  instinct  He  has  implanted  in  the  lion, 
the  raven,  the  hinds,  and  other  creatures  of  the 
wilderness,  and  closes  with  a  magnificent  passage 
which  we  must  translate: 

(xxxix.  19  if.) 

19       Couldst  thou  give  to  the  horse  his  strength  ? 
Couldst  thou  clothe  his  neck  as  with  thunder? 


90  THE  SERVANT  [cH. 

Couldst  thou  give  him  the  rustle  of  16cust8  ? 

That  gl6ry  and  terror  of  nostril ! 

He  p^weth  in  the  valley  and  exulteth  in  his  strength, 

He  rusheth  to  face  the  weapons. 

He  m6cketh  at  fear  and  is  not  dism&,yed, 

Nor  turneth  he  back  from  the  sword. 

Against  him  the  quiver  may  ring, 

The  flame  of  the  spear  and  the  javelin : 

With  furious  6nset  he  devours  the  gr6und, 

For  he  cannot  be  still  when  the  trumpet  sounds. 

In  the  thick  of  the  trumpets  he  saith,  Aha ! 

For  he  scenteth  the  b§,ttle  from  afar, 

The  thunder  of  captains  and  shout  of  war. 

Thus,  as  far  as  the  Book  of  Job  is  concerned,  the 
answer  to  the  problem  of  suffering  is  given  not  to  the 
intellect  but  to  the  eye  of  faith.  Job  might  have  said 
with  Browning's  Rahhi  hen  Ezra  : 

"I,  who  saw  power,  see  now  love  perfect  too: 
Perfect  I  call  Thy  plan: 
Thanks  that  I  was  a  man ! 
Maker,  remake,  complete, — I  trust  what  Thou  shalt  do!" 

Next  in  order  of  thought,  and  probably  in  order 
of  time,  comes  the  Evangelical  Prophet,  generally 
known  as  the  Second  Isaiah  who  prophesied  during 
the  closing  years  of  the  Captivity  (c.  538  B.c.)  and 
completed  the  mission  of  Jeremiah. 

We  have  already  seen  (p.  78)  that  Jeremiah  was 
the  first  to  speak  of  Israel  as  God's  "Servant"  who 
should  suffer  but  should  not  be  destroyed.     But 


V]  THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         91 

Jeremiah  attributes  no  atoning  value  to  those 
sufferings.  He  pictures  more  fully  than  any  other 
the  "glories  that  shall  follow,"  but  he  leaves  the 
mind  unsatisfied  as  to  the  justice  of  the  suffering. 
Not  so  the  Evangelical  Prophet  whose  position  in  the 
Old  Testament  is  unique. 

The  key-note  of  the  Evangelical  Prophet  is  struck 
in  the  opening  words  of  his  Prophecy  in  which, 
measuring  Jerusalem's  guilt  with  the  guilt  of  the 
Nations,  he  boldly  declares  that  her  sufferings  have 
more  than  atoned  for  it,  and  that  those  sufferings  are 
being  used  by  God  for  the  furtherance  of  His  Glory 
in  the  world  (cf.  Col.  i.  24). 

(Is.  xl.  1.) 

C6mfort  ye,  c6mfort  ye  My  People, 

Saith  your  God. 
Sp4ak  to  the  he^rt  of  Jerusalem, 

And  proclaim  unto  h^r 
That  her  service  is  accomplished  |  That  her  guilt  is  at6ned, 
That  she  took  at  Jahve's  hand, 

The  double  of  her  sins. 

He  sees  Israel  as  the  "Servant"  with  a  mission 
to  the  Gentiles ;  a  Servant  blind  to  the  Master's 
purpose,  yet  privileged  to  bring  through  his  own 
sufferings,  the  knowledge  of  God  to  all  the  Nations 
of  the  earth.  The  following  passages  may  suffice  to 
make  this  clear. 


92  THE  SERVANT  [CH. 

(Is.  xli.  8f.) 

And  Israel,  thou  art  My  Servant; 
The  J&,cob  whom  I  have  chosen; 
The  seed  of  Abraham  My  friend ; 
Thou  that  I  fetched  from  far  lands, 
And  called  from  the  confines  there6f, 
And  said  to  thee,  Thou  art  My  Servant, 
I  chose  thee  and  h^ve  not  rejected  thee. 

In  Abraham  "all  the  families  of  the  earth"  are 
to  be  blessed.  Abraham's  "  seed  "  is  "  elect "  to  carry 
out  this  purpose. 

(Is.  xlii.  1  ff.) 

1  Lo !  My  Servant  whom  t  uphold, 
The  Elect  My  S6ul  is  well  pleased  in ; 
I  have  put  My  Spirit  upon  him. 

He  will  bring  forth  right  to  the  Gentiles. 

2  He  shall  not  cry  nor  clamour, 

Nor  make  heard  his  voice  in  the  street; 

3  He  does  not  break  a  crushed  reed. 
Nor  quench  a  glimmering  wick ; 
But  in  truth  he  brings  forth  right. 

4  He  will  not  be  dim  or  crushed 

Till  he  st^blish  the  right  upon  earth. 
And  the  countries  await  his  teaching. 


6  I  Jahve  have  called  thee  in  righteousness, 
Have  holden  thy  h4nd  and  will  keep  thee, 
And  will  m^ke  thee  a  c6venant-people, 

a  light  for  the  Gentiles; 

7  To  6pen  eyes  that  are  blind. 

To  bring  forth  the  captive  from  prison. 
And  from  dungeon  those  sitting  in  darkness. 


V]         THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         93 

In  xliii.  10  the  singular  and  plural  are  applied  to 
Israel,  "Ye  are  My  witnesses,  saith  Jahve,  and  (ye 
are)  My  Servant  whom  I  have  chosen." 

The  success  of  the  Servant's  missionary  work  is 
pictured  as  follows : 

(Is.  xliv.  1  ff.) 

1  But  hear  now,  0  Jacob  My  Servant; 
And  israel  whom  I  have  chosen. 

2  Thds  saith  Jahve  thy  M4ker, 

He  that  formed  thee  from  birth  and  will  help  thee; 
Fear  not,  thou  Jacob  My  Servant, 
Jeshdrun  whdm  I  have  chosen; 

3  For  water  I  p6ur  on  the  thirsty. 
And  streams  on  the  dry-land; 

I  will  pour  on  thy  seed  My  Spirit, 
And,  on  thy  offspring,  My  blessing: 

4  They  shall  shoot  up  as  watered  gr^ss; 
As  poplars  by  water-c6urses. 

5  This  one  shall  say,  I  am  Jahve's; 
An6ther  shall  celebrate  J4cob ; 
An6ther  inscribes  himself  Jahve's, 
And  takes  Israel's  name  as  a  surname. 

The  missionary  work  of  the  Servant  results  in  the 
conversion  of  Egypt,  Ethiopia  and  the  Sabeans  (xlv. 
14)  and  indeed  of  all  the  Nations  (xlii.  4,  10,  12). 

(Is.  xlix.  1  ff.) 

1       He§-rken  ye  lands  unto  me  ! 
Give  ear  ye  peoples  from  afar! 
Jkhxe  called  me  from  the  womb; 
From  my  birth  He  mentioned  my  n^me: 


94  THE  SERVANT  [ch. 

2  And  He  made  my  moiith  a  sharp  sword; 
In  the  shade  of  His  hand  He  hid  me, 
And  He  made  me  a  polished  4rrow, 

In  His  quiver  concealed  me,  and  said, 

3  0  Israel  thoti  art  My  servant 
Through  whom  I  make  Myself  gl6rioiis. 

4  [Whereas  I  thought] 

I  have  laboured  in  vain  in  v6id, 
Have  spent  my  strength  for  nothing; 
And  yet  my  right  was  with  Jahve, 
My  reward  was  with  my  G6d. 

5  And  now  thus  saith  Jahve — 

That  f6rmed  me  from  bfrth  as  His  Servant 
To  bring  back  Jacob  to  Him, 
And  the  Israel  not  yet  gathered: 
And  s6  I  am  honoured  in  Jahve's  eyes, 
And  my  God  is  become  my  strength. 

6  And  He  said, 

'Tis  easy,  for  thee  to  be  Servant, 

To  rliise  up  the  tribes  of  Jacob, 

And  to  restore  the  remnant  of  Israel, 

But  I  make  thee  a  light  of  the  Gentiles, 

To  become  My  salvation  to  the  ends  of  the  ^arth. 

These  last  verses  involve  a  certain  difficulty ;  for 
if  the  Servant  be  the  ideal  Israel,  how  can  he  be  said 
to  bring  back  Israel  ?  To  this  I  would  reply  that  the 
Ten  Tribes  had  been  practically  lost  in  the  Captivity 
and  that  the  Prophets  naturally  expected  a  reunion 
so  that  "all  Israel  should  be  saved."  This  was  to  be 
brought  about  by  the  Servant.  But  the  hard  portion 
of  his  task  was  to  be  the  conversion  of  the  Gentiles. 


v]         THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING        95 

This  would  involve  him  in  suffering.     So  the  passage 
continues : 

7       Thus  saith  Jahve  : — 

fsrael's  Goel  and  H61y  One — 

Of  one  despised  and  abhorred  of  people, 

of  a  servant  of  despots — 
Kings  shall  see  and  rise  tip, 

and  pi-lnces  pay  reverence. 

In  other  words  the  Servant  who  had  been  oppressed 
and  despised  by  the  kings  of  the  earth  will  be  seen 
by  them  at  last,  and  confessed  with  wonder  as  the 
world's  redeemer. 

The  Servant  had  been  "blind"  to  this  good  purpose 
of  God. 

(Is.  xlii.  19.) 
Whd  is  so  blind  as  My  Servant? 

But  when  led  to  see,  he  will  accept  his  mission  as 
a  Sufferer,  and  the  sacrifice  will  become  joy. 

(Is.  1.5  f.) 

Jahve  hath  6pened  mine  ear — 

I  did  not  rebel,  nor  turn  away  back : 

I  gave  my  back  to  the  smlters,  |  My  cheeks  to  the  peeling; 

I  hid  not  my  face  from  spitting  and  shame. 

We  are  now  in  a  position  to  consider  the  famous 
passage  Is.  lii.  13 — liii. 

This  poem  is  complete  in  itself.  It  may  be  re- 
moved from  its  context  without  disturbing  the  sense 


96  THE  SUFFERING  SERVANT         [ch. 

Indeed  some  scholars  have  regarded  it  as  a  quotation. 
But  this  is,  I  think,  a  mistake ;  for  as  I  have  tried 
to  shew,  the  whole  argument  has  been  leading  up 
to  it. 

(Is.lii.  13  ff.) 

Strophe  I.    God  is  pictured  as  speaking. 

13  Behold  My  Servant  shall  prosper ; 

Shall  be  high  and  uplifted,  exceedingly  lofty. 

14  As  dumbfounded  at  thee  were  the  many — 
So  marred  more  than  human  his  visage, 
And  his  form  more  than  s6ns  of  men — 

15  So  (now)  he  astounds  many  nations ; 
At  him  kings  wonder  in  silence : 
[lit.  "shut  their  mouth  at  him"] 
For  a  thing  untold  do  they  see; 

An  unheard  of  thing  do  they  p6nder. 

Strophe  II.     The  many  Nations  of  the  world  as  represented 
by  their  kings  now  speak. 

Ch.  liii. 

1  Who  could  have  believed  this  good-news  of  ours  ? 
And  Jahve's  arm,  on  whom  hath  it  been  revealed? 

2  He  (i.e.  Israel)  came  tip  before  Him  as  a  plant; 
As  a  root  from  ground  that  is  dry. 

No  f6rm  or  splendour  was  his  |  that  we 

should  regard  him  1 
Nor  Aspect,  that  w6  should  desire  him! 

3  Despised  and  deserted  by  men  ! 

A  man  of  s6rrows,  and  wonted  to  sickness ! 
As  6ne  from  whom  (G6d's)  Face  was  hidden ! 
Despised,  and  we  counted  him  not ! 


V]         THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         97 

Strophe  III.     The  Nations  now  see  that  Israel,  whom  they 
despised,  has  been,  all  along,  the  scape-goat  for  the  world. 

4  But  our  sickness^  ni  hath  borne ! 
And  our  s6rrowsi  he  hath  carried ! 
While  WB  regarded  him  as  leprous; 
Stricken  of  God  and  afflfcted ! 

5  While  HE  was  pierced  by  our  sins; 
Bruised  by  our  iniquities ! 

The  chastisement  of  our  peace  was  on  him ; 
And  his  stripes  were  healing  for  us. 

6  All  we  had  wandered  like  sheep ; 
Each  his  own  way  we  had  turned; 

And  Jahve  caused  to  meet  on  him  the  sin 

of  all  of  tis. 

Strophe  IV.  The  Nations  ponder  with  wonder  over  the 
meekness  and  gentleness  of  the  Sufferer.  {Verses  Sab^ 
9  ab  are  difficult  and  possibly  corrupt.  I  leave  them  un- 
accented.) 

7  When  oppressed  he  6nly  humbled  himself, 
And  would  not  6pen  his  mouth. 

As  a  sheep  that  is  brought  to  the  slaughter, 
As  a  6we  that  is  dumb  to  her  shearers, 
So  he  would  not  6pen  his  motith. 

8  Without  rule  without  right  was  he  taken 
And  his  generation  who  could  declare? 
For  he  was  cut  from  the  land  of  the  living, 

For  the  sin  of  the  peoples,  the  plague  that  was  theirs. 

9  So  the  wicked  were  given  for  his  grave  (?) 
And  the  rich  for  his  (many)  deaths  ^ 

Becalise  that  no  violence  ^  he  did,  nor  was  fradd  in  his 

moiith. 
1  See  V.  3.  »  gzek.  xxviii.  10.  '  job  xvi.  17. 

K.  7 


98  THE  SUFFERING  SERVANT  [CH. 

Strophe  V.  Here^  as  in  strophe  I  the  point  of  view  is  not 
that  of  the  Nations  of  the  world  but  of  God  Himself  who 
becomes  the  actual  speaker  in  w.  11,  12. 

10  And  Jahve  willed  to  bruise^  him; 

He  caused  the  sickness  ^r 
f  f  his  soul  would  make  itself  an  offering 
A  seed  he  should  beh61d  should  have  long-  life 
And  the  will  of  Jahve  by  his  means  should  prosper : 

11  Of  the  travail  of  his  s6ul  he  should  see  and  be  content, 
By  his  (?its)  knowledge  should  My  Servant  make  the 

MANY  3  righteous ; 
And  their  iniquities  he  himself  shall  c4rry*. 

12  Therefore  I  allot  him  his  portion  with  the  many*, 
And  with  the  mighty  he  divides  the  spoil ; 

Because  that  he  hath  emptied  his  s6ul  unto  the  death, 
And  was  numbered  with  transgressors. 
So  he  himself  the  sin  of  ma'ny^  bare 
And  s6  at6nes  transgressors. 

The  reader  will  notice  that  the  word  "Many" 
occurs  five  times  in  this  Poem,  twice  in  strophe  I 
and  three  times  in  strophe  V.  In  strophe  I  "the 
many"  were  the  Nations  of  the  World  whose  look 
of  pitying  contempt  shall  be  changed  to  a  look  of 
adoring  wonder.  In  strophe  V  we  learn  how  this 
has  come  about.  The  "Servant"  has  cast  in  his 
portion  with  "the  many."  He  has  borne  the  sin  of 
"the  many,"  and  so  has  made  "the  many"  acceptable 

*  V.  6.  2  ^.  3  f.  3  yy,  14^  15. 

*  V.  4.  5  V.  11. 


V]         THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING         99 

to  God.    Thus  by  the  obedience  of  the  One  the  Many 
are  made  righteous  (of.  Rom.  v.  15). 

There  is  nothing  in  the  history  of  prophecy  more 
remarkable  than  the  small  effect  produced  by  these 
wonderful  Chapters  of  the  Suffering  Servant.  No 
doubt  we  may  in  part  account  for  this  by  the  fact 
that  Persia  the  deliverer  soon  became  Persia  the 
persecutor,  and  the  sense  of  Israel's  mission  to  the 
Gentiles  was  lost  in  bitterness.  But  for  the  true 
cause  we  must  look  deeper  and  regard  it  as  a 
"mystery"  hidden  in  God  to  await  the  fulness  of 
Christian  times.  Meanwhile  the  prophecy  is  there. 
It  is 

"...music  sent  up  to  God  by  the  lover  and  the  bard; 
Enough  that  He  heard  it  once ;  we  shall  hear  it  by  and  by." 

The  suffering  of  the  good,  and  the  prosperity  of 
evil-doers,  tended  at  a  later  time  to  direct  the  thoughts 
of  men  to  the  life  beyond  the  grave.  We  will  give 
one  illustration  of  this  from  the  Asaph  Psalms  which 
I  would  assign  to  c.  450  B.c.  The  Psalm  (Ixxiii.)  is 
interesting  not  only  for  its  subject-matter  but  also 
for  its  metre. 

(Ps.  Ixxiii.) 

1  Mere  g6odness  is  G6d  unto  Israel, 

To  the  Pure  in  heart! 

2  As  for  me — ^my  f6et  had  nigh  gone ; 
My  steps  had  all  but  slipped. 

7—2 


100  A  PSALMIST'S  DIFFICULTY  [CH. 

3  For  I  Envied  the  16t  of  the  protid ; 
The  peace  of  the  wicked  I  saw. 

4  For  p^ngs  are  not  for  th^m ; 
Sound  and  robust  is  their  health. 

6    No  share  have  they  in  man's  toil, 
Nor  are  they  stricken  like  6thers. 

6  Therefore  doth  pride  bedeck  them ; 
Violence  enr6bes  them  as  a  garment. 

7  Their  iniquity  proudly  goes  forth : 
They  exceed  all  heart  can  picture. 

8  They  m6ck  while  they  wickedly  speak; 
They  16ftily  speak  their  oppression, 

9  They  have  set  their  mouth  against  heaven; 
And  their  tongue  goes  the  circuit  of  earth. 

10  Therefore...  [text  doubtful] 

11  And  they  say,  "How  then  can  God  kn6w? 

Has  Ely6n  perception  ? " 

12  Beh61d  the  wicked  are  thds! 
Ever  at  peace  they  grow  strong ! 

13  Then  vainly  I  cleanse  my  heart, 
And  wash  my  hands  in  innocency ; 

14  While  I  am  stricken  all  day. 
My  chastisement  m6rn  by  m6rn! 

15  Trtily  were  1  to  speak  thus 

I  were  false  to  the  generation  of  Thy  children. 

16  Yet,  when  I  bethought  me  to  kn6w  this, 
Grievous  it  was  in  mine  eyes ; 

17  Till  I  came  to  the  Sanctuary  of  G6d — 

I  thought  on  their  6nd ! 

18  Merely  'mid  delusions  Thou  dost  place  them — 

Dost  cast  them  to  ruin ! 


V]         THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFEPJ'M    •'  loi 

19  How  sudden  they  c6me  to  destrtiction — 

Are  ended  with  terror ! 

20  When  rotised  Thou  spiirnest  their  image 

Like  a  dr6am  on  awaking ! 

21  Indeed,  when  my  heart  was  embittered, 

And  my  reins  were  perturbed, 

22  Then  t — I  was  brutish  and  knew  not— 

I  became  as  the  beasts! 

23  Yet  i— am  ever  with  Thee ; 

Thou  uph61dest  my  hand; 

24  With  Thy  counsel  dost  guide  me;  and  ^fter 

Wilt  t4ke  me  in  gl6ry. 

25  Who  is  mine  in  the  heavens? 

And,  with  Thee,  I  desire  naught  on  earth. 

26  My  flesh  and  my  heart  may  consume. 
Yet  the  Rock  of  my  heart  and  my  p6rtion 

ElShlm  is  for  ever! 

27  For  beh61d !  Thy  divorced-ones  must  parish  ; 
Thou  destroyest  each  whoring  from  Thee. 

28  But  for  me — the  nearness  of  G6d  is  my  g6od ; 
In  Jahve,  the  L6rd,  do  I  set  my  refuge. 

The  metre  of  this  Psalm  is  irregular.  It  opens 
with  the  Kinah  measure,  after  which  we  have  several 
verses  in  triplets.  Then  vv.  17 — 24,  a  fine  passage 
of  Kinah,  after  which  we  have  further  irregularity. 
Whether  this  be  due  to  corruption  of  the  text  or  to 
the  intention  of  the  writer  we  cannot  now  determine. 
Our  present  object  is  to  consider  the  Psalm  merely  in 
regard  to  the  problem  of  the  sufferings  of  the  righteous, 
i.e.  Israel. 


''ihi'''  A  SOLUTION  [CH.  V 

Verse  1  states  the  eternal  truth;  vv.  2 — 11  the 
apparent  exception  which  creates  the  difficulty.  In 
vv.  12 — 14  the  Psalmist  speaking  for  Israel,  confesses 
the  temptation  to  doubt  the  eternal  truth  of  v.  1. 
If  he  were  to  yield  to  that  temptation  he  feels  that 
he  would  be  a  traitor  to  the  cause  of  God  {v.  15), 
and  yet  he,  like  Job,  feels  the  difficulty  most  keenly 
{v.  16).  The  solution  comes  (vv.  I7ff.)  when  he  enters 
into  "the  Sanctuary  of  God."  By  this  we  must  not 
understand  the  Temple  but  rather  the  Sanctuary- 
purpose  of  God's  creative  thought.  The  Psalmist, 
like  Dante,  must  "see  the  children  of  perdition" 
{Purg.  XXX.  end).  The  solution  reached  by  the 
Psalmist  differs  from  that  of  Job  and  indicates  a  later 
date.  It  is  nothing  less  than  this — The  wicked  have 
no  reality  of  existence,  they  are  but  a  dream  of  God 
{v.  20),  which  when  He  wakes  He  puts  away^  whereas 
Israel,  the  righteous,  is  an  Enoch  who  "walks  with 
God"  {v.  24),  and  being  "joined  unto  the  Lord"  is 
"one  Spirit"  with  Him  {v.  28,  cf.  1  Cor.  vi.  17).  Thus 
the  Psalm  returns  {v.  28)  to  the  thought  with  which 
it  commenced;  God  is  "good  to  Israel"  and  Israel's 
"good"  is  the  "nearness  of  God."  If  the  Psalmist 
did  not  reach  to  the  Christian  conception  oi  personal 
immortality,  he  had  at  least  the  root  of  the  matter  in 
Israel's  union  with  God. 

1  Compare  Shakespeare,  Second  Part  of  King  Hem-y  IV,  Scene  V, 
lines  50—54. 


CHAPTER  VI 

ON  THE  STROPHE 

It  may  be  well,  at  once,  to  define  the  sense  in 
which  we  apply  the  word  strophe  to  Hebrew  poetry 
since  it  difiers  somewhat  from  the  clearly  defined 
strophe  and  antistrophe  of  the  classical  writers. 

The  Hebrew  strophe  is  a  development  of  parallel- 
ism. That  which  parallelism  is  to  the  ear  in  the 
structure  of  the  verse,  that  the  strophe  is  to  the  mind 
in  the  arrangement  of  the  whole  poem.  This  balance 
of  thought  is  sometimes  marked  by  a  refrain  and  is 
found  not  only  in  the  lyric  poetry  of  the  Psalms  but 
also  in  the  rhetorical  poetry  of  the  Prophets  \    Thus : 

(Amos  vii.  1 — 9,  viii.  1 — 3.) 

Strophe  I. 

1  Thus  hath  the  Lord  God  shewed  me: 

And   behold    He  was  framing   the   locust   at   the    early 

shooting  of  the  latter-growth ; 
And   behold   it   was    the    latter-growth    after   the  king's 

mowings. 

2  So  it  was  when  it  finished  to  eat  all  the  grass  of  the  land, 
Then  I  said,  O  Lord  God,  forgive  now; 

HouD  shall  Jacob  stand?  for  he  is  small  I 

3  (Then)  Jahve  repented  of  this: 
It  shall  not  he,  saith  Jahve. 

1  See  Dr  D.  H.  Miiller,  Komposition  und  Strophenbau. 


104  RHETORICAL  REFRAIN  [CH. 

Strophe  II. 

4  Thus  hath  the  Lord  God  shewed  me : 

And  behold  He  was  calling  to  contend  by  fire, 
And  it  devoured  the  great  deep 
And  was  eating  the  land. 

5  Then  I  said^  O  Lord  God^  cease  now; 
How  shall  Jacob  stand?  for  he  is  small! 

6  (Then)  Jahve  repented  of  this : 
This  too  shall  not  he,  saith  Jahve. 

Here  we  have  two  strophes  of  eight  lines  each, 
closing  with  the  same  refrain.  In  the  same  way 
vv.  7 — 9  form  another  strophe  of  eight  lines  corre- 
sponding with  viii.  1 — 3,  as  follows: 

Strophe  III. 

7  Thus  He  (the  Lord  God)  shewed  me ; 

And  behold  He  stood  on  a  plumbline  wall,  with  a  plumbline 
in  hand. 

8  And  Jahve  said  to  me,  What  seest  thou,  Amos? 
And  I  answered,  A  plumbline. 

And  the  Lord  said,  Lo  I  am  setting  a  plumbline  in  the 

midst  of  My  people  Israel ; 
/  will  not  again  pass  hy  them. 

9  And  Isaac's  shrines  shall  be  desolate,  and  the  sanctuaries  of 

Israel  waste ; 
And  I  rise  against  the  house  of  Jeroboam  with  the  sword. 

Strophe  IV  (Chap.  viii.  1—3). 
1    Thus  the  Lord  God  shewed  me; 
And  behold  a  basket  of  endings\ 

1  "Endings,'"  lit.  summer-fruit,  so  called  because  it  comes  at  the 
end  of  the  year.  I  have  coined  the  word  endings  in  order  to  preserve 
the  play  upon  the  word  end  which  occurs  in  the  Hebrew. 


VI]  ON  THE  STROPHE  105 

2  And  He  said,  What  seest  thou,  Amos  ? 
And  I  answered,  A  basket  of  endings. 

And  Jahve  said  to  me,  The  end  is  coming  for  My  people 

Israel ; 
/  will  not  again  pass  by  them. 

3  And  the  Temple  songs  shall  be  bowlings  in  that  day,  saith 

the  Lord  God. 
Many  the  corpses,  in  every  place,  one  casts  them  forth  with 
silence. 

A  fine  example  of  the  prophetical  use  of  the 
refrain  is  found  in  Is.  ix.  7 — 20.  I  have  based  my 
translation  upon  the  critical  edition  of  the  Hebrew 
text  in  "  The  Sacred  Books  of  the  Old  Testament." 
The  rhetoric  of  the  Prophet  becomes  lyric  through 
intensity  of  feeling. 

7  The  Lord  sent  a  w6rd  into  J^cob, 

And  it  lighted  on  Israel. 

8  And  the  whole  of  the  People  shall  kn6w. 
Even  Ephraim  and  the  dwellers  in  Sam4ria 
That  [stiffen  their  necks]  with  pride 
Saying  thus,  in  stoutness  of  heart ; — 

9  Bricks  have  failed  |  hewn-st6ne  we  build; 

Felled  are  the  sycomores  ;  |  we  replace  them  with  cedara. 

10  So  Jahve  sets  tip  his  [enemies]  ag§.inst  him, 

And  his  foes  He  incites. 

11  Edom  in  front  |  and  the  Philistine  behind. 
And  they  eat  up  Israel,  open-mouthed. 
For  all  this  His  dnger  turns  not, 

But  His  hand  is  stretched  out  still. 

12  Yet  the  People  turns  n6t  to  its  Smiter, 

And  seeks  not  to  J4hve. 


106  ISAIAH  AND  PROVERBS  [ch. 

13    So  He  c6ts  from  Israel  h6ad  and  t4il 
P41m-branch  and  rush,  in  one  d^y! 


16  For  'tis  wh611y  vile  and  evil ; 
And  every  mouth  speaketh  f611y. 
For  all  this  His  anger  turns  n6t, 
But  His  hdnd  is  stretched  out  still. 

17  For  wickedness  burneth  like  fire 
That  devoureth  brier  and  thorn 

When  it  kindles  the  thickets  of  the  forest 
Till  they  mount  in  pillars  of  smoke. 
18*  Through  Jahve's  wrath  shall  the  Land  be  kindled, 
And  the  people  be  as  fuel  for  the  fire, 

19  When  it  snatches  on  the  right,  but  hungers, 
And  devoureth  on  the  left,  unsatisfied. 

18°  So  n6  man  hath  pity  on  brother ; 
Each  devours  the  flesh  of  his  [fellow] ; 

20  Manasseh,  Ephraim  ;  and  Ephraim,  Manasseh  ; 
And  b6th  against  Jtidah  together! 

For  all  this  His  anger  turns  nU^ 
But  His  hdnd  is  stretched  out  still. 

(Chap.  X.) 

1  Ho !  you  decreers  of  unrighteous  decrees ! 
Indlters  of  edicts  oppressive ! 

2  Thrusting  the  feeble  from  justice, 
And  steahng  the  right  of  My  p6or ! 
So  that  widows  become  their  spoil. 
And  the  fatherless  they  may  r6b ! 

3  What  will  ye  do  in  the  day  of  visitation. 
The  desol§,tion  that  comes  from  afar  ? 
To  wh6m  will  ye  flee  as  a  refuge? 

And  where  will  ye  leave  your  wealth? 


VI]  ON  THE  STROPHE  107 

4 

For  all  this  His  dnger  turns  n6t^ 
But  His  hdnd  is  stretched  out  still. 

Even  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs  we  find  instances 
of  strophical  arrangement.    The  Wisdom  literature, 
regarded  as  poetry,  is  somewhat  stiff  and  pedantic,  as 
we  have  already  seen  in  the  Alphabetical  Psalms,  but 
it  represents  a  phase  of  Judaism,  influenced  prob- 
ably in  its  later  form  by  Greek  thought,  which  is  well 
worthy  of  study.     I  select  as  an  example  the  famous 
Wisdom-passage  in  Prov.  viii.     The  word  which  we 
translate  ^^ workman''  (E.V.  "o^ie  hrought  up"\  in 
V.  30,  is  not  altogether  certain,  but,  in  other  passages, 
we  find  the  thought  of  Wisdom  as  a  builder  and  as 
cooperating  with  God  in  Creation.    Thus : 
(Prov.  xxiv.  3.) 
Through  "Wisdom  is  bullded  the  ho<ise, 
And  stablished  it  Is  by  discretion. 

Compare  Jer.  x.  12,  li.  15  where  almost  the  same 
words  are  applied  to  God  as  the  Creator  of  the  World. 

Also  (Prov.  iii.  19.) 

Jahve  through  Wisdom  built  6arth; 
Through  discretion  He  stablished  the  h^arens. 

And  (Prov.  ix.  1.) 

Wisdom  hath  bullded  her  house; 
Hath  hewn  out  her  seven  pillars. 

We  now  offer  a  translation  of  Prov.  viii.  1  ff. 


108  PROVERBS  VIII  [oh. 

(Prov.  viii.    Metre  3  +  3.) 

Strophe  I.    In  praise  of  Wisdom. 

1  D6th  not  Wisdom  cry,  |  and  Prudence  titter  her  voice? 

2  In  the  chi^f  of  the  piiblic  high-places,  |  she  standeth  amid 

the  paths; 

3  By  the  City  entrance  g^tes,  ]  at  the  6pening  of  the  doors  she 

cries ; — 

4  Unto  yoii,  0  men,  I  call ;  |  and  my  voice  is  to  sons  of  men. 

5  0  ye  simple,  give  heed  unto  prudence,  |  and,  ye  f6ols,  prepare 

your  hearts. 

6  H6ar,  for  I  speak  a  verity  (?)  |  and  the  6pening  of  my  lips  is 

equity. 

7  For  'tis  truth  that  my  mouth  shall  litter,  |  while  wickedness 

is  abh6rred  by  my  lips. 

8  All  the  words  of  my  mouth  are  in  rlghtness,  |  naught  in 

them  crooked  or  froward. 

9  They  are  all  of  them  plain  to  the  wise,  |  and  right  to  them 

that  find  knowledge. 
10    Accept  ye  my  teaching — not  sliver —  |  and  kn6wledge  pre- 
ferred to  choice-g61di. 

Strophe  II.     Wisdom  in  relation  to  man. 

12  f  [Wisdom]  do  neighbour  with  Prudence,  |  kn6wledge  and 

discretion  I  attain. 

13  Arr6gance,  pride,  and  wrong-doing,  |  and  the  fr6ward  molith, 

do  I  hate. 

14  Counsel   is  mine,  and  sound-kn6wledge,  |  mine  (is)  under- 

standing and  might. 

15  Through  m6  kings  do  reign,  [  and  princes  rightly  bear  sw^y. 

16  Through  m6  rulers  do  rlile,  |  and  n6bles  g6vern  justly. 

1  I  agree  with  Miiller  in  rejecting  v.  11  as  a  gloss  introduced  from 
chapter  iii.  14  f. 


VI]  ON  THE  STROPHE  109 

17  f  love  them  that  love  me,  |  and  my  diligent-seekers  shall 

find  me. 

18  Wealth  and  honour  are  mine,  |  durable  riches  and  righteous- 

ness. 

19  My  fruit  is  better  than  finest-gold,  |  my  pr6duce  than  choicest 

silver. 

20  In  the  w^y  that  is  right  I  go,  |  in  the  midst  of  the  paths  of 

judgement : 

21  To  give  the  true-wealth  to  my  friends,  |  and  to  fill  their 

treasuries  full. 

Strophe  III.     Wisdom  in  relation  to  God. 

22  Jahve  gat  Me  at  the  first,  |  bef6re  His  w6rks  of  yore. 

23  From  of  61d  was  I  moulded —  |  from  the  first  beginnings  of 

earth : 

24  While  as  yet  were  no  deeps  was  I  f6rmed,  |  when  no  fotintains 

abounded  (?)  with  water : 

25  E'er  the  mountains'  foundations  were  14id,  |  before  the  hills 

was  I  framed : 

26  Before  He  made  earth  and  J5elds,  |  and  the  topmost  dust  of 

the  world. 

27  There  was  t  when  He  framed  the  heavens,  |  when  He  circled 

the  face  of  the  d4ep : 

28  When  He  set  the  sky  firm  up  ab6ve,  |  when  He  strengthened 

the  w611s  of  the  d^epi : 

29  When  He  m^de  for  the  Sea  His  \kw,  \  that  its  waters  should 

not  exceed  :  |  when  he  lawed  the  foundations  of  earth. 

30  Then  was  t,  His  w6rkman,  by  Him,  |  rejoicing  bef6re  Him  at 

411  times : 

31  Rejoicing  in  the  w6rld  of  His  earth,  |  my  delights  being  the 

sons  of  m6n. 

1  V.  28^.     This  reads  like  a  gloss  to  explain  v.  27^.     The  super- 
fluous member  of  v.  29,  i.e.  v.  29"  would  read  better  here. 


110  PSALM  XLVI  [CH. 

Here  we  have  three  clearly  marked  strophes  of 
ten  lines  each.  The  first  strophe  may  be  regarded 
as  introductory  in  praise  of  wisdom.  The  second 
strophe  treats  of  wisdom  on  earth,  in  relation  to 
man,  while  the  third  strophe  treats  of  wisdom  in 
Heaven,  in  relation  to  God.  Compare  the  Alpha- 
betical Psalms  cxi.  and  cxii.  I  have  shewn  in  my 
Introduction  to  the  Alphabetical  Psalms  that  the 
number  ten^  the  number  of  the  Covenant,  plays  a 
most  important  part  in  their  arrangement  (see  Psalms 
in  Three  CollectionSy  pp.  26 — 49).  The  writer  of 
Prov.  viii.  belonged  to  the  same  school  and  would  be 
influenced  by  similar  motives. 

The  next  illustration  we  shall  take  will  be  Psalm 
xlvi.  in  which  the  original  metre  is  clearly 

(2  +  2)  +  (2  +  2) 
with  a  ring  that  reminds  us  of  the  Anapaest. 

This  Psalm,  however,  contains  some  lines  in  the 
more  common  metre  of  3  +  3  which  seem  to  interrupt 
the  sense,  and  which  may  possibly  be  due  to  a  later 
writer.  Since  our  present  object  is  to  illustrate  the 
metre  I  shall,  in  my  translation,  avail  myself  of  Roth- 
stein's  Hebrew  Text  and  shall  omit  the  portions  which 
he  marks  in  smaller  type  as  not  belonging  to  the 
original  Poem,  while  I  refer  the  Hebrew  scholar  to 
his  critical  notes.  Rothstein  regards  the  refrain  as 
3  +  3  metre.    Thus: 

Jahve  of  H6sts  is  with  us  I  our  Tower  is  Jacob's  G6d. 


VI]  ON  THE  STROPHE  111 

I  would,  however,  call  attention  to  the  fact  that 
the  Divine  Names,  which  may  have  been  written  with 
abbreviations,  are  peculiarly  uncertain. 

(Ps.  xlvi.) 

Metre  (2 +  2) +(2 +2).     Refrain  3  +  3. 

2    Jahve  is  ours,  |  a  refuge  and  a  strength,  | 

a  help  in  distresses  |  most  ready  to  be  found. 

Therefore  we  fear  not,  |  though  earth  suffer  change,  | 
though  mountains  rem6ve  |  to  the  heart  of  the  seas. 

[Jahve  of  Hosts  is  wIth  us,  |  our  tower  is  Jacob's  God.] 

4    Waters  may  rage,  |  mountains  may  qntke  \ 

at  the  swelling  of  the  River,  |  the  raging  of  its  w^ves. 

7  Nations  may  rage,  |  kingdoms  be  moved  |  — 

He  utters  His  voice  |  earth  is  diss61ved ! 

8  Jahve  of  Hosts  is  with  us  |  our  tower  is  Jacob's  God. 

9  C6me  ye  and  see  |  the  d6ings  of  Jahve,  | 

who  quieteth  war  \  to  remotest  earth. 

11  Be  still  and  kn6w  |  that  t  am  G6d;  | 

exalted  'mid  the  Nations,  |  exalted  in  the  earth. 

12  Jahve  of  H6sts  is  with  us,  |  our  tower  is  Jacob's  God. 

I  do  not  pledge  myself  to  accept  all  Rothstein's 
emendations  but  they  are  certainly  of  interest  as 
shewing  the  value  of  metrical  study  in  textual 
criticism. 

If  we  admit  that  the  Psalm  has  been  revised  I 
would  suggest  that  the  object  of  the  revision  was  to 
connect  it  with  such  passages  as  Is.  xxxiii.  20  ff.  where 


112  USE  OF  REFRAIN  [CH. 

God  Himself  is  the  "  River  "  that  lends  such  security 
to  Jerusalem.    Thus : 

20  Thine  6yes  shall  see  Jerfisalem 

A  quiet  ab6de,  a  tent  that  rem6veth  not, 

Whose  pegs  are  never  drawn  out, 

And  none  of  whose  cords  become  rent.     < 

21  For  there  (as)  a  River  Jahve  is  ours, 
A  place  of  canals,  >vlde-reaching ; 
Wherein  no  trireme  can  come 

Nor  can  w^r-ship  pass  through  it. 

22  For  Jahve  our  judge— 
J4hve  our  leader — 
J^hve  our  King — 

He  (it  is)  will  s4ve  us. 

This  passage  is  not  without  difficulty  (see  Hebrew 
text  in  Sacred  Books  of  0.  T.)  but  the  general  sense 
is  clear.  Other  cities,  like  Babylon,  Thebes,  or  Tyre, 
were  protected  by  mighty  waters  ;  Jerusalem  had  no 
River,  but,  better  far,  had  the  protection  of  God. 

Other  instances  of  the  use  of  a  refrain  will  be 
found  in  Pss.  xxxix.  6,  12  (5,  11);  xlii.  6,  12  (5,  11), 
with  xliii.  5;  xlix.  13,  21  (12,  20);  Ivi.  5,  11  (4,  11); 
Ivii.  6,  12  (5,  11);  lix.  7,  15  (6,  14);  10,  18  (9,  17); 
Ixii.  3,  7  (2,  6);  Ixvii.  4,  6  (3,  5);  Ixxx.  4,  8,  20  (3,  7, 
19);  Ixxxvii.  4^  6°;  xcix.  3^  5°,  9°;  cvii.  6,  13,  19,  28 
and  8,  15,  21,  31 ;  cxvi.  13^  f.,  17^  f.  Also  the  response 
throughout  Ps.  cxxxvi. 

Some  of  these  passages  are  treated  at  length  in 
other  chapters  (see  pp.  50  ff. ;  80  ;  114  f.)  and,  indeed, 


VI]  ON  THE  STROPHE  113 

the  whole  of  our  chapter  on  Alphabetical  Poetry  is 
an  illustration  of  the  Hebrew  strophe. 

Ps.  xcix.  is  specially  interesting  as  an  example  of 
the  strophe  marked  by  a  refrain.  In  the  present  text 
the  refrain  occurs  three  times  and  in  an  augmented 
form.  Thus  the  Psalm  is  divided  into  three  strophes, 
the  first  two  being  nearly  equal,  while  the  third  is  a 
double  strophe.  Many  commentators  (Wellhausen, 
Duhm,  &c.)  assume  that  what  I  have  called  a  double 
strophe  was  originally  divided  by  a  refrain,  which  has 
been  lost,  after  v.  7.  But  this,  I  think,  is  a  mistake. 
The  thrice-repeated  "  Holy  "  (vv.  3,  5,  9)  is,  as  in  Is. 
vi.,  the  cry  of  the  Cherubim  who  are  mentioned  in 
V,  1.  As,  in  Is.  vi.,  the  Angels  acclaim  the  Advent  of 
God's  "Glory"  on  earth,  so,  in  the  present  Psalm,  the 
trisagion  acclaims  His  coming  Kingdom. 

In  strophe  I  the  thought  centres  upon  the  power 
of  the  Divine  King ;  in  strophe  II  upon  His  justice ; 
in  strophe  III  upon  His  mercy.  Thus  the  trisagion 
of  the  refrain  acclaims  three  aspects  of  the  Divine 
Nature. 

The  opening  words  of  v.  1  denote,  in  the  original, 
not  the  mere  fact  of  Jahve's  Kingship,  but  rather, 
that  His  reign  on  earth  has  begun.  The  Psalm 
belongs  to  a  group  of  Psalms  which  we  might  call  the 
Psalms  of  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

A  question  arises  as  to  the  metre  of  the  Psalm. 
Undoubtedly  the  greater  part  is  in  beats  of  two 


114  AUGMENTED  REFRAIN  [CH. 

accents,  but,  in  vv.  5,  6  and  9,  we  have  lines  of  three 
accents.    Is  this  due  to  a  revision  of  the  Psalm  or 
was  it  the  intention  of  the  original  writer  ? 
Verse  6  might  be  literally  translated 

"Moses  and  Aaron  among  His  priests 
And  Samuel  among  the  Callers  on  His  Name," 

but  the  Hebrew  idiom  rather  signifies  that  Moses  and 
Aaron  were  chiefest  of  His  priests  and  that  Samuel 
was  chiefest  of  those  that  intercede.  Thus  they 
represent  types  of  intercession. 

(Ps.  xcix.     Metre  (2 +  2) +  (2 +  2)  with  occasional 
passages  of  3  +  3.) 

Steophe  I.     The  holiness  of  God  in  His  power. 

1  Jahve  is  King,  |  though  the  Peoples  may  rage ;  |  He  is  thr6ned 

on  the  Cherub,  |  though  earth  may  be  moved. 

2  Jahve  in  Zlon  |  is  gre4t  and  exalted ;  |  exalted  is  He  |  above 

all  the  Peoples. 

3  They  praise  Thy  Name,  |  the  great  and  the  terrible :  |  Holy 

IS  He. 

Strophe  II.     The  holiness  of  God  in  His  justice. 

4  [Thoti  art]  the  King  |  that  16vest  right.— 

Thoti  hast  established  |  equity  (and)  justice ;  |  righteousness 
in  J4cob  I  Thod  hast  wrought. 

5  Exalt  ye  Jahve  our  God 

And  how  at  the  stool  of  His  feet 
Holy  is  He. 


VI]  ON  THE  STROPHE  115 

Strophe  III.     The  holiness  of  God  in  His  mercy. 

6  Moses  and  A§,ron  His  priests; 
And  Samuel  am6ng  intercessors; 

To  Jahve  they  cry  |  and  He  gives  them  answer ; 

7  In  the  pillar  of  cloud  |  He  speaks  with  them : 

They  kept  His  testimonies  |  and  a  statute  He  gave  them. 

8  Jahve,  our  God,  |  Thou  answeredst  them ; 
A  God  forgiving  |  Thou  wast  to  them ; 
While  punishing  their  deeds. 

9  Exdlt  ye  Jahve  our  G6d 

And  hbw  at  the  Mount  of  His  h61iness 
For  Holy  is  Jahve  our  God. 

We  must  now  consider  instances  in  which  the 
strophe  is  not  marked  either  by  alphabetical  arrange- 
ment or  by  a  refrain  but  determined  only  by  a  careftil 
study  of  the  contents,  e.g.  Ps.  xiii.  Here  the  metre 
is  in  four  beats  except  for  the  third  line  where  a 
marginal  gloss  seems  to  have  crept  into  the  text 
making  the  line  too  long. 

It  may  be  well  first  to  offer  a  translation  and 
then  to  consider  how  far  we  are  justified  in  dividing 
the  Psalm  into  strophes. 

(Ps.  xiii.    Metre  4  +  4.) 

/a     How  long  wilt  Thou  utterly  forget  me,  Jahve  ? 
h      How  16ng  wilt  Thou  hide  Thy  countenance  fr6m 
me? 
Sorrow  I  c      How  16ng  must  I  l^y  distress  to  mfnd  ? 

[Gloss,    grief  in  my  heart  all  day.] 
How  16ng  shall  mine  enemy  exalt  himself  against 


8—2 


116  WITHOUT  REFRAIN  [oh. 

'ai  Regard  Thou  and  answer  me,  J^hve  my  God. 

hi  Lighten  mine  eyes  lest  I  sleep  in  death. 

Ci  Let  not  mine  enemy  say,  I  have  mastered  him. 

di  [Let  not]  my  foes  exult  at  my  fall. 

10,2  -^s  for  me  in  Thy  kindness  I  trust — 

Joy  \b2  My  heart  extilts  in  Thy  salvation—      • 

\c2  I  sing  unto  Jahve  for  His  bounty  towards  me — 

(5?2  {Missing^  but  see  Septuagint.) 

It  is  evident  that  the  Psalm  falls  naturally  into 
three  parts.  The  first  four  lines  are  all  sorrow,  the 
second  four  lines  are  all  prayer,  and  the  last  three 
lines  are  all  joy.  But,  if  our  theory  be  right,  we 
should  have  expected  four  lines  also  in  the  last 
strophe.  And  here  the  Septuagint  comes  to  our  aid 
and  supplies  exactly  the  line  that  we  require  to 
conclude  the  third  strophe  and  to  complete  the 
parallelism.     Thus : 

"/  give  prdise  to  the  Name  of  Jdhve  most  High." 

Undoubtedly  this  represents  the  original  text.  Thus 
we  have  three  strophes  of  four  lines  each,  conveying 
by  their  arrangement  the  spiritual  lesson  that  sorrow 
is  turned  into  joy  through  prayer. 

But  further.  I  think  we  may  trace  a  relation 
between  the  lines  which  I  have  marked  ahcd,  aibyCidi, 
a^h^c^d^.  Thus :  The  Sorrow  in  a  and  h  is  on  account  of 
the  hiding  of  Gods  countenance,  i.e.  it  is  sorrow  from 
God.  The  sorrow  in  c  and  d  is  on  account  of  the 
oppression  of  enemies,  i.e.  it  is  sorrow  from  man. 


VI]  ON  THE  STROPHE  117 

So  the  Prayer  in  a^  and  hi  is  for  the  restoration  of 
God's  countenance ;  while,  in  Ci  and  di  it  is  deliver- 
ance from  enemies.  So,  too,  the  Joy  in  a^  and  h^  is 
a  thanksgiving  for  the  restoration  of  God's  favour y 
while  in  c^  and  d^  it  refers  to  the  benefit  received 
through  deliverance  from  foes. 

As  to  the  word  in  line  3  which  (following  the 
Syriac)  I  translate  ''distress"  the  Hebrew  has  a 
similar  word  which  signifies  "  counsel."  I  suggest 
that  this  difficult  line  gave  rise  to  an  early  gloss 
"  grief  in  my  heart  &c.,"  and  that  this  gloss  became 
incorporated  in  the  text. 

The  beautiful  Shepherd-Psalm  (xxiii.)  which  is, 
perhaps,  more  familiar  than  any  other  Psalm  in  the 
Psalter,  will  reveal  new  beauties  to  us  if  we  carefully 
study  its  structure.  The  main  division  of  the  Psalm 
at  the  close  of  verse  3  is  obvious  even  to  a  careless 
reader.  But  the  relation  between  the  two  strophes 
thus  obtained  is  not  generally  understood  and  our 
present  division  into  verses  tends  to  obscure  it.  The 
metre  of  the  Hebrew  is  elegiac,  or  Ktnah  measure, 
with  an  additional  stichos  in  v.  4*  which  may,  or 
may  not,  be  due  to  a  gloss. 

In  strophe  I  {vv.  1 — 3)  we  see  the  Good  Shepherd 
caring  for  the  sheep  in  three  ways,  {a)  by  His  Presence, 
(b)  by  feeding  it,  (c)  by  guiding  it.  Thus  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  three  lines  of  strophe  I  may  be  summed 
up  under  the  heads  Presence,  Refreshment,  Guidance. 


118 


STROPHE  AND  SENSE 


[CH. 


In  strophe  II  {vv.  4 — 6)  each  line  of  strophe  I  is 
expanded  into  two  lines  with  the  same  thoughts  of 
PresencBy  Refreshment  and  Guidance.  For  the 
spiritual  lessons  which  follow  from  this  arrangement 
I  may  perhaps  be  allowed  to  refer  to  Psalms  in  Three 
Collections^  Part  I,  pp.  104  ff. 

(Ps.  xxiii.    Metre  3  +  2.) 
Strophe  I. 

Presence  1    Jahve's  my  Shepherd— I  want  not.  |  'Mid  ver- 

dure He  tends  me; 

Refreshment  2^  By  restful  streams  He  leads  me;  |  Herest6reth 
my  soul; 

Guidance  3  He  guldeth  in  p&ths  that  are  right ;  |  for  His 
6wn  Name's  sake. 

Strophe  II. 

r4  Though  I  g6  through  the  Valley  of  G16om  |  no 

1  evil  I  fear;  |  for  Thod  art  beside  me  ; 

I  Thy  rod  and  Thy  st^ying-stalS*;  |  they  are  my 

[  comfort. 

rs  Thou  spreadest  a  table  for  me,  |  in  the  sfght 

I  of  my  foes  ; 

I  Thou  enrfchest  my  head  with  oil,  |  my  cup 

[  overflows ! 

^6  Naught  but  g6odness  and  mercy  pursue  me  | 

I  all  the  days  of  my  life ; 

I  am  homed  in  the  House  of  Jahve,  |  for  ever 

L  and  ever ! 


Presence 


Refreshment 


Quidance 


One  further  illustration  of  the  way  in  which  the 
meaning  of  a  passage  is  brought  out  by  the  study  of 


VI]  ON  THE  STROPHE  119 

its  strophical  arrangement  may  be  given  from  the 
beautiful  song  in  Is.  xi.  1 — 8.  I  translate  from  the 
critical  text  omitting  v,  3*  as  an  obvious  gloss  (with 
Bickell,  Cheyne,  Duhm,  &c.). 

1  There  cometh  a  Shoot  from  Jesse-stem, 
And  a  Branch  buds  forth  from  his  roots: 

2  And  there  resteth  on  him  Jahve's  Spirit: — 
(a)  The  Spirit  of  Wisdom  and  Understanding, 
(6)  The  Spirit  of  Counsel  and  Stre'ngth, 

(c)  The  Spirit  of  Knowledge  and  Piety ; 

That  he  judge  not  by  sight  of  his  eyes ; 
Nor  convict  by  the  s6nse  of  his  6ars, 


(«i) 


And  he  smlteth  the  tyrant  with  rod  of  mo<ith ; 
And  slayeth  the  ^vlcked  with  breath  of  his  Kps. 


,,  V  (4    And  he  judges  the  feeble  with  right ; 

^  ^'  1      And  justly  convicts  for  the  poor. 

(^i)  { 

ih)  f 

(^2)  { 

(^3)  \ 


And  right  is  the  girdle  of  his  loins ; 

And  faithfulness  the  girdle  of  his  reins. 

And  the  wolf  shall  lodge  with  the  lamb; 

And  the  leopard  lie  down  with  the  kid. 

And  the  calf  and  the  Hon  shall  pasture  (together); 

And  a  little  child  may  lead  them. 

And  the  c6w  and  the  bear  shall  gr^ze; 
Their  young-ones  lie  down  together. 
And  the  lion  like  the  6x  eats  hay; 
And  the  b4by  sp6rts  by  the  asp-hole. 
And  over  the  den  of  the  basilisk 
The  weaned-child  lays  his  hand. 

If  this  passage  be  carefully  studied  it  will  be  seen 
that  it  is  ruled  by  the  numbers  three  and  six.    Each 


120  STROPHE  AND  SENSE  [CH.  vi 

of  the  three  lines  which  I  have  marked  (a),  (b),  (c) 
contains  two  gifts  of  the  Spirit.  These  three  lines 
are  developed  in  three  strophes  of  six  lines  each 
which  run  in  pairs  corresponding  more  or  less  closely 
with  the  gifts  of  the  Spirit  in  the  lines  (a),  (b\  (c).  I 
have  indicated  these  relations  by  the  letters  di,hi,  Ci; 

Clij    t>2>    Cz',      Ct^f    Uzy    C3. 

The  arrangement  in  verses  is  quite  wrong  and 
tends  to  obscure  the  meaning.  Thus  the  omission  of 
the  gloss  3*,  which  we  omitted  on  purely  critical 
grounds,  is  also  defended  by  the  structure  of  the 
poem. 


CHAPTER  VII 

ON  DRAMATIC  LYRICS 

Though  drama,  in  the  sense  of  the  acted  play, 
is  alien  to  the  spirit  of  Hebrew  poetry,  yet  it  is  not 
so  with  the  dramatic  lyric  which  vividly  pictures  a 
scene  and  introduces  change  of  thought  and  speaker, 
indicated,  at  times,  by  a  change  of  metre.  We  may 
illustrate  this  from  the  Song  of  Songs,  generally 
called  the  Song  of  Solomon.  Probably  no  two 
commentators  would  agree  as  to  the  interpretation 
of  the  poem  in  every  detail,  but  all  would  admit  that 
it  consists  of  a  series  of  dramatic  lyrics  which  may  be 
divided  into  Acts  and  that  it  thus  approximates  more 
nearly  to  the  drama  than  any  other  poem  in  the 
literature  of  the  Bible. 

The  outline  is  briefly  as  follows.  A  beautiful 
Shulammite  (cf.  Shunammite,  1  K.  i.  3)  maiden  is 
taken  into  the  royal  harem,  where,  in  spite  of  all 
temptation,  she  remains  true  to  the  shepherd-lover 
of  her  northern  home,  and  is  at  last  permitted  to 
return  to  him  as  his  spotless  bride,  thus  to  vindicate 
the  worth  of  love  (viii.  6  &.). 

In  the  translations  which  I  give  as  specimens  of 
this  poem  I  have  availed  myself  of  Rothstein's  Hebrew 


122  THE  SONG  OF  SONGS  [oh. 

text  in  his  GrundzUge  des  hebrdischen  Ehythrmts, 
though  I  have  not  always  accepted  his  emendations. 
In  chap.  i.  9 — 14  we  have  to  distinguish  the 
speakers  by  the  context  and  the  structure  of  the 
strophe.    Thus : 

Solomon  is  fiattering  the  maiden. 
9    To  a  steed  in  a  Pharaoh's  chariot,  |  I  compare  thee  my  love. 

10  F4ir  were  thy  cheeks  with  the  p6arl-rings,  |  thy  n6ck  with 

the  jewels: 

11  We  will  make  for  thee  strings  of  g61d  |  with  points  of  silver. 

Throughout  this  strophe  the  king  keeps  up  his 
somewhat  coarse  simile  of  the  steed  with  its  trappings. 
All  he  has  to  give  is  gold  and  silver. 

In  the  next  strophe  the  maiden  replies  with 
modesty.  She  wonders  that  she  should  have  found 
favour  with  the  king,  but  assures  him  that  she  has 
given  her  love  elsewhere.  If  her  perfume  has  reached 
to  the  king,  she  herself  knows  one  who,  to  her,  is 
sweeter  than  all  myrrh.    Thus : 

12  Can  it  b6  to  the  king  on  his  divan  |  my  perfume  hath  reached  ? 

13  My  true-love's  the  btindle  of  myrrh  |  that  lies  in  my  b6som. 

14  My  true-love's  the  cluster  of  henna  |  on  the  sl6pes  of  En-g6di. 

(Chap.  ii.  3.     Metre  3  +  2.) 
TTie  Shulammite^  thinking  of  her  absent  lover. 

As  the  ^pple  'mid  tr6es  of  the  forest  | 

so  my  16ve  amid  youths. 
In  his  shadow  I  j6yed  as  I  sat  | 

and  his  fruit  was  mv  sweet. 


VII]  ON  DRAMATIC  LYRICS  123 

(Chap.  ii.  8  ff.) 

Another  reminiscence  of  the  maiden^  picturing  her  lover's 
invitation  to  come  forth  and  enjoy  the  spring  (Metre  3  +  2+2). 

My  16 ve !  lo  here  he  comes !  |  leaping  on  the  mountains  |  skipping 

on  the  hills. 
He  is  here,  behind  our  w^U;  |  peering  through  the  windows  | 

glancing  through  the  lattice. 
My  love  he  si)eaks  and  calls  me ;  |  Rise  my  darling,  |  Come  my 

fair-one. 
For  16,  the  winter's  6ver;  |  rain  is  p6,st;  |  the  c61d  is  g6ne. 
F16wers  are  seen  in  the  earth ;  |  s6ng-time  is  c6me,  |  the  ring-dove 

is  heard. 
The  fig-tree  is  riping  her  b^lls,  |  the  vines  are  in  bloom,  |  giving 

forth  scent. 
Arise  then,  my  darling,  my  d6ve,  |  to  the  clefts  of  the  r6ck,  |  to 

the  c6vert  of  steeps. 
Shew  me  thy  face,  let  me  h6ar  thee ;  |  for  8w6et  is  thy  voice,  |  thy 

countenance  c6mely. 

Someone  sings  a  vineyard  song  (Metre  2  +  2). 

C^tch  us  the  f6xes,  |  the  f6xes  so  small. 

That  are  spoiling  the  vineyards,  j  our  vineyards  in  bl6om. 

Another  brief  passage  in  the  rare  metre  (3  +  2  +  2) 
is  found  in  chap.  iv.  8 — 13.  It  seems  to  continue  the 
invitation  to  the  walk  in  spring  (ii.  8ff.)  which  we 
have  already  translated,  and,  like  that  passage,  it 
breaks  into  the  (2  +  2)  metre  of  popular  song. 

In  my  translation  I  follow  Rothstein's  Hebrew 
text. 


124  THE  SONG  OF  SONGS  [OH. 

(Chap.  iv.  8  flf.     Metre  3  +  2  +  2.) 
From  Lebanon  came  my  bride ;  |  with  me  from  Lebanon ;  |  from 

the  dens  of  the  Ifons. 
From  the  t6p  of  Amana  look  forth,  |  from  the  top  of  Shenfr,  | 

from  the  mountains  of  leopards. 
0  bride  thou  hast  ravished  my  heart  1  with  a  glance  of  thine 

eyes,  |  with  a  turn  of  thy  neck. 
How  sweet  thy  caresses,  my  bride ;  |  how  better  than  wine !  |  and 

thy  perfume  than  spices! 
Thy  lips  as  the  h6neycomb  drip;  |  h6ney  and  milk  |  are  tinder 

thy  tongue. 
Thy  cheeks  a  p6megranate  6rchard  j  with  choicest  of  fruit ;  | 

camphire  with  spikenard. 

{He  sings.) 
Wake  thou  North- wind;  |  come  thou  Sotith. 
Breathe  on  my  garden,  |  that  its  spices  may  fl6w. 

The  next  specimen  we  shall  give  is  a  beautiful 
dream  in  which  the  maiden  seems  to  herself  to  have 
been  unkind  to  her  true  lover. 

(Chap.  V.  2  if.     Metre  3  +  2.) 

I  slept,  but  my  heart  was  awake  |  — my  bel6ved  is  kn6cking ! 
"Open,  my  sister,  my  love,  |  my  d6ve,  my  perfection: 

For  my  head  is  filled  with  dew,  |  my  16cks  with  the  drip." 
"  As  for  me  I  have  put  off  my  dress ;  |  h6w  can  I  clothe  me  ? 

As  for  me  I  have  washen  my  feet;  |  h6w  can  I  soil  them?" 

He  put  forth  his  hand  from  the  door;  |  my  compassions  were 
m6ved. 

I  r6se,  even  1,  to  6pen ;  |  and  my  h^nds  dripped  with  myrrh. 

Then  I,  for  my  love,  did  open;  |  but  my  love  he  was  gone! 

My  s6ul  went  forth  at  his  passing;  |  I  called,  but  no  Answer! 


VII]  ON  DRAMATIC  LYRICS  125 

The  maiden  finally  rejects  her  royal  admirer  and 
declares  her  loyalty  to  her  true  lover  (vii.  11) : 
My  love  he  is  mine,  and  I  his;  |  his  desire  is  to  me. 

After  which  the  metre  changes  back  to  the  metre 
of  chap.  ii.  8  if.  (i.e.  3  +  2  +  2)  and  the  maiden  accepts 
that  invitation  of  her  shepherd-lover  almost  in  the 
words  in  which  it  had  been  proposed  : 

C6me  thou,  my  16 ve,  let  us  forth;  |  let  us  dwell  in  the  h6nna;  |  let 

us  visit  the  vineyards  ; 
Let  us  see  if  the  vine  hath  budded;  |  if  its  bl688om  be  6pen  ;  |  if 

the  pomegranates  bloom. 

These  three  examples  which  we  have  given  are, 
I  believe,  the  only  instances  of  this  metre  occurring 
in  the  Song. 

We  must  conclude  with  the  scene,  chap.  viii.  5 — 7, 
which  is  so  admirably  described  in  Dr  Harper's  Com- 
mentary on  the  Song  of  Solomon  that  I  must  borrow 
his  words : 

"  The  scene  depicted  in  these  verses  is  the  return 
of  the  Shulammite  with  her  lover  to  the  village.  As 
they  draw  near  she  leans  upon  him  in  weariness,  and 
they  are  observed  by  some  of  the  villagers,  who  ask 
the  question  in  v.  5\  The  lovers  meantime  come 
slowly  on,  and  as  they  come  he  points  out  an  apple 
tree  under  which  he  had  once  found  her  sleeping  and 
awaked  her,  and  then  as  they  come  in  sight  of  it,  he 
points  to  her  birthplace,  her  mother's  home.      In 


126  THE  SONG  OF  SONGS  [oH. 

vv,  6  and  7  the  Shulammite  utters  that  great  panegy- 
ric of  love  which  is  the  climax  and  glory  of  the  book. 
Because  of  this  power  of  love  which  she  feels  in  her 
heart  she  beseeches  her  lover  to  bind  her  closely  to 
himself." 

(viii.  5  ff.) 

Scene  near  the  village  home.     Villagers  speak. 

5    Who  is  this  that  comes  tip  from  the  wilderness,  |  that  leans 
on  her  16ver? 

The  hridegroom  speaks  to  the  bride. 

'Twas  tinder  (yon)  apple  I  waked  thee — 
'Twas  th^re  thy  mother  bare  thee — 
'Twas  th6re  she  b^re  thee  with  travail. 

The  bride  speaks,  clinging  closer  to  her  lover. 

6    Set  me  as  a  seal  on  thine  heart; 
(Set  me)  as  a  seal  on  thine  ^rm; 
For  love  is  str6ng  as  death; 
Jealousy  is  crtiel  as  the  grave; 
It  flames  with  a  God-like  flame. 

The  villagers  draw  the  moral  of  the  brides  constancy — 
speaking  in  prose. 

7  Many  waters  cannot  quench  love,  neither  can  rivers  drown 
it.  If  a  man  would  give  the  whole  substance  of  his  house  for  love 
he  would  be  utterly  despised. 

On  V.  6  Dr  Harper  well  quotes  Browning's  Any 
Wife  to  any  Hitsband: 


VII]  ON  DRAMATIC  LYRICS  127 

"It  would  not  be  because  my  eye  grew  dim 
Thou  couldst  not  find  the  love  there,  thanks  to  Him 

Who  never  is  dishonoured  in  the  spark 
He  gave  us  from  His  fire  of  fires,  and  bade 
Remember  whence  it  sprang,  nor  be  afraid 

While  that  burns  on,  though  all  the  rest  grow  dark." 

Another  example  of  the  dramatic  lyric  may  be 
given  from  the  Songs  of  Isaiah. 

Isaiah  is  specially  fond  of  paronomasia  and 
assonance  (e.g.  v.  7,  x.  30,  &c.)  which  he  uses  with 
great  effect.  He  is  not  afraid  also  to  use  the  language 
of  mythology.  Thus  we  cannot  understand  his  song 
on  Ariel  without  being  reminded  that  the  sound  of 
the  word  would,  to  the  Hebrew  ear,  suggest  two 
thoughts,  (a)  "  the  Lion  of  God"  (b)  " altar-hearth " 
for  sacrifice,  and  also  that  the  word  I)6d  might  be 
taken  either  as  the  name  David,  or  in  its  original 
significance  as  the  divine  name,  as  on  the  Moabite 
Stone.  See  Bennett's  note  on  the  Moabite  Stone  in 
Hast.  Dicty  p.  407,  where  he  calls  attention  to  the 
fact  that  in  the  three  or  four  places  in  which  AriU 
occurs  "  it  is  connected  with  the  City  of  David  in  Is. 
xxix.  1  and  with  DWDH  here."  The  sense  of  AriM 
as  an  "altar-hearth"  will  be  found  in  Ezek.  xliii.  15  f. 

The  Song  on  Ari^l  (Is.  xxix.  1  ff.)  opens,  I  believe, 
with  the  boastful  words  of  the  enemy  (?  Sennacherib) 
as  follows : 
1    Al§.s!  Ari^l,  Aridl;  |  City  where  D6d  encamps! 

Add  (but)  year  unto  y^ar;  |  let  the  seasons  go  round: 


128  DOD  AND  DAVID  [oh. 

2  Th6n  do  I  straiten  Ari^l,  [i.e.  GocPs  Lion] 
And  m6aning  and  gr6aning  shall  be: 

And  to  me  she  becomes  Ariel.      [i.e.  an  altar-hearth] 

3  And  I  camp  like  Dod  against  thee, 

And  lay  siege  with  a  modnd  against  thee, 
And  raise  up  against  thee  towers. 

4  Till  thou  speak,  being  abased,  from  the  ground,  ' 
Thy  speech  coming  thin  from  the  dust; 

And  thy  voice  be  as  ghost  from  the  groiind, 
Thy  whispering  words  from  the  dust. 

Here  the  scene  changes  and  God  speaks  and 
assures  His  City  of  His  protection.  The  metre  here 
also  changes.    Thus : 

5  Then  the  h6st  of  thy  foes  |  becometh  small-ddst, 
And  as  drifting  chaflF  |  the  h68t  of  thy  tyrants: 

And  this  shall  be  sudden  and  instant. 

Here  again  the  scene  changes.  No  longer  do  we 
hear  the  words  of  God  but  the  Prophet  himself 
describes  the  deliverance  that  he  sees  in  the  vision  of 
prophecy.    Thus : 

6  By  J&hve  of  Hosts  she  is  visited. 

With  thunder,  and  earthquake,  and  mlghty-volce ; 
With  whirlwind,  tempest,  and  devouring  flame. 

It  is  evident  from  the  words  which  follow  that  the 
"visitation  "  of  God  is  for  the  redemption  of  His  City 
and  for  the  destruction  of  the  "multitude  of  the 
nations  that  fight  against  Ari^l"  (v.  7). 

The  names  Dod,  Dodu,  David  are  the  same,  and 
signify  Love  or  the  Beloved.    The  Jebusite  stronghold 


VII]  ON  DRAMATIC  LYRICS  129 

may  very  possibly  have  been  regarded  as  "  the  City  of 
DOdu  "  before  it  was  taken  by  David  and  called  after 
his  own  name  (2  S.  v.  7). 

There  is  another  Song  of  Isaiah's  in  which  he 
appears  to  me  to  use  Dddu  as  a  name  of  God.  It  is 
the  Song  of  the  Vineyard  (v.  1  ff.)* 

L6t  me  now  sing  for  Dodu  |  Dddu's  song  of  his  vineyard. 
D6du  had  a  vineyard  |  on  a  hill  very  fertile. 
And  he  fenced  it,  and  cleared  it  and  planted  it  choicely. 
And  he  built  therein  a  tower, 
And  also  hewed  him  a  wine-vat. 
So  he  16oked  it  should  yield  him  grapes — 
And  it  yielded  but  wild-grapes ! 

Thus  we  have  the  "  City  of  David  "  and  the  Vine- 
yard (or  Vine)  of  David.  The  Vine  was  the  emblem 
of  Judah  (Ezek.  xv. ;  Gen.  xlix.  11 ;  Ps.  Ixxx.  8 — 14) 
and  I  suggest  that  the  difficult  passage  in  The  Teaching 
of  the  Twelve  Apostles,  Ch.  ix.,  respecting  the  "  Fme 
of  David"  had  its  origin  in  Isaiah's  Song  of  the  Vine 
or  Song  of  the  Vineyard,  for  the  word  may  be  trans- 
lated either  way. 

The  passage  in  the  "  Teaching  "  runs  thus  : 
"Now,  concerning  the  Eucharist,  thus  shall  ye 
give  thanks.  First  with  regard  to  the  Cup : — We 
give  thanks  to  Thee,  our  Father,  for  the  holy  Vine 
(of)  David  Thy  Servant  which  Thou  madest  known 
unto  us  through  Jesus  Thy  Servant."  The  Suffering 
Servant  is  the  "  very  vine  "  of  God  (Jn.  xv.  1 — 5). 

K.  9 


130  PSALM  II  [CH. 

The  second  Psalm  may  be  given  as  a  good  illus- 
tration of  Dramatic  Lyrics,  though  we  might  have 
been  equally  justified  in  regarding  it  as  an  example 
of  the  strophe.  The  change  of  speaker  is  vividly 
distinguished  by  the  context.  Thus,  in  v.  3  we  have 
the  rebel  words  of  the  earth-powers ;  in  v.  6  the 
words  of  God  with  respect  to  His  Anointed ;  while, 
in  vv.  7 — 9,  the  Anointed  himself  speaks  of  his  God- 
given  authority.  Thus  there  is  a  relation  between 
strophes  II  and  III,  while  strophe  IV  exactly  corre- 
sponds with  strophe  I.  I  have  left  the  diflSicult  line 
V.  12*  untranslated  because  this  is  not  the  place  for  a 
critical  investigation  of  the  text.  The  corresponding 
reference  to  the  "  Christ "  in  v.  2,  and  to  the  "  Son  "  in 
V.  7,  would  lead  us  to  expect  some  such  line  as,  "  Obey 
the  Son  lest  he  be  angry  and  ye  perish."  It  is  only 
fair  to  say  that  the  text  as  it  stands  is  uncertain  on 
critical  grounds  and  does  not  quite  suit  the  metre. 

(Psalm  ii.) 

Steophe  1.     The  Voice  of  the  Psalmist 

1  Why  do  the  heathen  rage  |  and  the  peoples  vainly  design? 

2  The  kings  of  the  earth  stand  up  |  and  princes  are  banded 

together 

'Gainst  Jahve  and  'gainst  His  Christ! 

3  "Let  us  break  asunder  their  bonds  i  and  cast  from  6fF  us  their 

fitters." 


VII]  ON  DRAMATIC  LYRICS  131 

Strophe  II.     The  scene  in  heaven. 

4  The  throned-One  in  h6aven  laughs ;  |  the  L6rd  but  derides 

them! 

5  He  speaketh  to  them  in  His  6,nger  |  and  troubleth  them  in 

His  wrath. 

6  "'Twas  i  that  anointed  My  King  |  on  Zlon  My  h61y  Modnt." 

Strophe  III.    77ie  Voice  of  the  Anointed. 

7  Let  me  tell  of  Jahve's  decree — 

He  said  to  me,  Thou  art  My  S6n,  |  it  is  I,  this  day,  have 
beg6tten  thee. 

8  Ask  of  Me  that  I  ^^q  thee  |  nations  thine  heritage,  |  the 

ends  of  the  earth  thy  possession. 

9  Thou  shalt  break  them  with  sceptre  of  Iron,  |  as  a  p6tter's 

vessel  shalt  shatter  them. 

Strophe  IV.     The  Voice  of  the  Psalmist. 

10  And  now,  ye  kings,  be  wise;  |  be  warned  ye  judges  of  6arth. 

11  S6rve  ye  Jahve  with  fear;  |  and... unto  Him  with  trembling. 
12 

For  his  §,nger  may  Easily  bfim.  |  Happy  they  that  take  refuge 
in  Him. 


9—2 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS 

To  every  poet  the  spring  of  the  year  is  a  prophecy 
of  new  creation.    Shelley  felt  this  when  he  wrote  : 

"  The  airs  and  streams  renew  their  joyous  tone ; 
The  ants,  the  bees,  the  swallows,  reappear ; 
Fresh  leaves  and  flowers  deck  the  dead  season's  bier. 
The  loving  birds  now  pair  in  every  brake, 
And  build  their  mossy  homes  in  field  and  brere; 
And  the  green  lizard  and  the  golden  snake, 
Like  unimprison'd  flames,  ont  of  their  trance  awake, 
Through  wood  and  stream,  and  field  and  hill  and  ocean, 
A  quickening  life  from  the  earth's  heart  has  burst, 
As  it  has  ever  done,  with  change  and  motion, 
From  the  great  morning  of  the  world !  when  first 
God  dawn'd  on  chaos:  ...." 

No  wonder  then,  if  to  the  Hebrew  poet,  who  was, 
before  all  things,  a  prophet,  the  cycle  of  the  seasons 
shall  speak  of  God's  eternal  purpose  for  His  worlds. 

It  would  not  be  difficult  to  shew  that  the  "  Days  " 
of  Creation  (Gen.  i.)  are  based  upon  the  months  of 
the  year,  commencing  from  the  spring,  which,  as 
Shelley  reminds  us,  is  the  type  of  "  the  great  morning 
of  the  world."    In  a  little  book  like  this  I  cannot  do 


CH.  VIII]   THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS   133 

more  than  suggest  a  few  thoughts  on  this  wide  and 
important  subject.  For  this  purpose  I  commence 
with  Ps.  civ.  and  must  repeat,  in  part,  what  I  have 
written  in  my  Introduction  to  that  Psalm  (Psalms  in 
Three  Collections,  p.  430). 

The  Psalm  is  based  upon  the  "Six  Days"  of 
Creation  as  given  in  the  Priest-code  (Gen.  i.).  There 
is,  however,  this  important  difference  that,  whereas 
Gen.  i.  purposes  to  relate  in  prose  the  order  of  life's 
first  beginnings,  our  Psalmist,  with  a  poet's  instinct, 
recognises  Creation  as  an  eternal  work  which  is  still 
going  on  and  which  all  points  to  a  "far  off  Divine 
Event,"  viz.  the  completion  of  God's  joy  in  His  works. 
This  being  so  he  sees  no  inconsistency  in  regarding 
animals,  birds  and  men  as  being  already  in  existence 
on  the  Third  Day.  We  might  analyse  the  Psalm  as 
follows : 

vv.  1,  2.  The  First  Day,  like  the  first  month  in 
spring,  is  filled  with  the  promise  of  the  birth  of 
light. 

vv.  3,  4.  The  Second  Day  reminds  us  how  God 
builds  His  firmament,  making,  as  Shelley  says, 

"...the  winds  and  sunbeams,  with  their  convex  gleams 
Build  up  the  blue  dome  of  air," 

thus  causing  the  very  elements  of  destruction  to 
contribute  to  the  conservation  of  the  earth. 

w,  5 — 18.  The  Third  Day,  like  the  third  month, 
is  "the  gift  of  seed."    It  reminds  us  how  (a)  God 


134  "DAYS"  OF  CREATION  [CH. 

has  taken  the  waters,  which  were  once  the  winding- 
sheet  of  a  dead  earth,  and  made  them  countless  rills 
of  blessing  to  birds  and  beasts  and  men.  It  also 
reminds  us  (b)  how  God  made  the  dry  land  thus  to 
become  the  bountiful  seed-plot  of  corn  and  wine  and 
oil. 

m  19—23.  The  Fourth  Day,  like  the  fourth 
month  (the  month  of  the  summer  stolstice)  tells 
God's  good  purpose  in  darkness  as  well  as  in  light, 
while  it  points  to  the  final  triumph  of  light  (v,  22  f.). 

vv.  24—30.  The  Fifth  Day,  like  the  fifth  month 
(which  even  in  the  nature-religion  of  Babylonia  was 
dedicated  to  Istar  as  the  bona  dea  of  fertility),  tells 
of  the  infinite  variety  of  God's  "creatures"  and  of 
His  care  for  all  their  needs. 

vv.  31 — 35.  The  Sixth  Day,  like  the  autumn 
month,  sums  up  the  growing  purpose  of  the  whole 
Creation,  viz.  that  this  bountiful  God  may  rejoice  at 
last  in  a  world  from  which  all  evil  has  been  expelled. 

The  metre  of  the  Psalm  is  3  -}-  3  with  occasional 
triplets. 

(Ps.  civ.) 

The  First  "Day  "  of  Creation  (Gen.  i.  3—5).     Voices  of  Spring. 

1  Thou  art  greki,  O  my  G6d,  exceedingly  :  |  Thou  hast  deck'd 

Thee  with  splendour  and  majesty. 

2  Putting  on  light  as  a  garment;  |  spreading  out  the  heavens 

as  a  ctirtain. 


VIII]     THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS      135 

The  Second  '^Day"  of  Creation  (Gen.  i.  6—8).     Qod'g  Building 
seen  in  the  Firmament  (cf.  Ps.  xix.  2). 

3  THe  flooreth  His  upper-chambers  in  the  waters; 
-[He  maketh  thick  clouds  His  chariot; 

(He  moveth  on  wings  of  the  wind. 

4  Making  the  winds  His  angels  |  the  flaming  fire  His  ministers. 

The  Third  ''Day"  of  Creation  (Gen.  i.  9f.).    Dry  land 
and  seed. 

5  He  founded  the  earth  on  her  bases ;  |  that  she  should  not  be 

moved  for  ever. 

6  With  the  Deep,  as  a  garment,  Thou  hast  c6vered  her ;  |  so 

the  waters  stood  6ver  the  moiintains. 

7  At  Thy  rebuke  they  flee  ;— 

At  the  voice  of  Thy  thunder  they  h^ten  :— 
8^  To  the  place  Thou  hadst  founded  for  th6m  : 
9    Nor  transgress  the  limit  assigned   them,  |  nor  return  to 
c6ver  the  6arth. 

10  He  s6ndeth  the  springs  down  the  channels ;  |  am6ng  the 

mountains  they  nin. 

11  They  give  drink  to  all  b6ast8  of  the  field;  |  wild-asses  may 

quench  their  thirst. 

13  He  gives  mountains  to  drink  from  His  chambers ;  |  Earth  is 

filled  from  the  fruit  of  Thy  w6rks. 

14  Making  grass  to  spi-lng  for  the  cattle  |  and  herbage  for 

tillage  of  man. 

15  To  bring  forth  f6od  from  the  earth  |  and  wine  that  may 

gladden  man's  heart. 
Cheering  the  f^ce  with  oil  |  and  f6od  that  should  strengthen 
man's  heart. 

16  The  trees  of  G6d  have  their  fill ;  |  the  cedars  of  Lebanon 

that  He  planted. 


136  "DAYS"  OF  CREATION  [CH. 

12    On  th^m  dwell  fowls  of  heaven:  |  'mid  their  branches  they 
utter  their  song. 

17  'Tis  there  the  little-birds  n6st;  |  the  st6rk  (too)  whose  h6me 

is  the  firs. 

18  The  16fty  hills  for  the  goats;  |  the  cr^gs  are  a  r6fuge  for  the 

c6nies. 

The  Fourth  ''Day"  of  Creation  (Gen.  i.  14—19).     The  lesser 
and  greater  lights.     The  cycle  of  the  festivals. 

19  He  m^keth  the  moon  for  the  seasons;  |  and  the  sun  knows 

the  pl§-ce  of  his  setting. 

20  Thou  m^kest   darkness — it  is  night —  |  all  beasts    of  the 

forest  creep  forth. 

21  The  lions  r6aring  for  prey  |  and  seeking  their  meat  from  God. 

22  The  stin  but  rises — they  are  g6ne,  |  and  lay  them  down  in 

their  dens. 

23  Man  goeth  forth  to  his   w6rk,  |  to   his  labour  until   the 

evening. 

The  Fifth  ''Day''  of  Creation  (Gen.  i.  20—23).     The  voices 
of  summer.     The  teeming  life  of  earth  and  sea. 

24  0  Jahve,  how  great  are  Thy  works! 

The  whole  Thou  hast  wr6ught  in  wisdom ! 
The  6arth  is  filled  with  Thy  wealth ! 

25  This  sea,  so  great  and  wide-spreading, 
Wherein  are  things  creeping  innumerable; 
Cre§,tures  both  small  and  great. 

26  There  the  ships  \^the  nautili]  go  along  |  and  Leviathan 

f6rmed  for  Thy  plaything. 

27  They  k\\  look  expectant  to  Thee  |  to  ^\q  them  their  food  in 

its  season. 

28  Thou  glvest  to  th6m — they  gather  it :  |  Thou  6penest  Thy 

h^nd — they  are  s^ted. 


VIII]    THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS       137 

29  Thou  hldest  Thy  Face— they  are  troubled : 
Thou  withdrawest  their  breath — they  expire, 
And  return  again  to  their  dust. 

30  Thou  sendest  Thy  breath — they  are  made —  |  Thou  renewest 

the  face  of  the  grotind. 

The  poet  now  draws  his  conclusion  as  a  prophet 
from  the  cycle  of  God's  work  which  he  has  traced  in 
creation.  He  would  not  have  said  with  the  Writer 
of  Ecclesiastes  that  "what  has  been  shall  be  and  that 
there  is  nothing  new  under  the  sun."  On  the  contrary 
he  sees  that  God  is  making  all  things  new.  He  sees 
that  God's  purpose  is  good  and  that  life  not  death  is 
the  end  (v.  30). 

That  nothing  walks  with  aimless  feet; 

That  not  one  life  shall  be  destroyed, 

Or  cast  as  rubbish  to  the  void, 
When  God  hath  made  the  pile  complete. 

So  the  conclusion  to  which  our  Psalmist  arrives  is 
based  upon  that  j&rst  Sixth  Day  (Gen.  i.  24 — 31),  when 
God  looked  upon  all  things  that  He  had  made  and 
declared  them  to  be  "very  good." 

As  God  then  rejoiced  in  His  works,  so  God  will 
rejoice  in  the  End  which  must  mean  the  extinction  of 
all  evil. 

The  Sixth  "Z>a^"  of  Creation  and  its  meaning  for  the  future — 
Autumn  voices.    Every  common  hush  a-flame  with  God. 

31  Be  the  G16ry  of  J^hve  for  6ver !  |  Let  Jahve  rejoice  in  Hie 

w6rks! 


138  COVENANT  OF  CREATION  [ch. 

32  Who  but  16oketh  on  earth  and  it  trembleth ;  |  He  but  tolicheth 

the  hills  and  they  sm6ke. 

33  I  will  sing  while  I  live  unto  Jahve ;  |  While  being  lasts  I  will 

hymn  to  my  God. 

34  My  mtising  on  Him  shall  be  sweet:  j  As  for  me  I  rejoice  in 

Jahve. 

35  May  sinners  be  ended  from  6arth,  |  and  the  wicked  .exist  no 

m6re! 
My  s6ul  do  thoti  bless  J4hve. 

Even  in  the  early  days  of  the  Jehovist  the  promise 
that  "  seed-time  and  harvest,  cold  and  heat,  summer 
and  winter,  day  and  night,  should  not  cease,"  was 
given  as  the  pledge  of  God's  acceptance  (Gen.  viii.  22). 

The  order  of  the  seasons  was,  to  the  prophet 
Jeremiah,  a  token  of  God's  everlasting  covenant  with 
Israel.  Thus,  Jer.  xxxiii.  20  f. :  "  Thus  saith  Jahve, 
If  ye  can  break  My  covenant,  the  day,  and  My  cove- 
nant, the  night,  so  that  day  and  night  should  not  be 
in  their  season;  then  may  also  My  covenant  with 
David,  My  servant,  be  broken...." 

And  again,  v.  25  f.:  "If  I  did  not  appoint  My 
covenant  the  day  and  the  night  as  laws  of  heaven 
and  earth;  then,  too,  I  might  cast  off  the  seed  of 
Jacob  and  David  My  servant."  The  reader  will 
notice  that  the  Covenant  of  Creation  becomes  the 
pledge  of  the  Covenant  with  David. 

Jeremiah's  famous  chapter  (xxxi.)  on  the  New 
Covenant  closes  with  the  same  thought,  vv.  35 — 37 
(Heb.  34—36):  "Thus  saith  Jahve  that  giveth  the 


viii]    THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS       139 

sun  for  light  by  day,  the  laws  of  the  moon  and  stars 
for  light  by  night... If  these  laws  can  depart  from 
before  Me,  saith  Jahve,  then  might  the  seed  of 
Israel  cease  from  being  a  nation  before  Me  for 
ever...."  The  poet  of  the  next  generation,  known 
to  us  as  the  Second  Isaiah,  connects  this  Covenant  of 
Creation  with  the  Covenant  of  Noah,  Is.  liv.  9,  "  For 
this  is  unto  Me  the  waters  of  Noah,  even  as  I  have 
sworn  that  the  waters  of  Noah  should  not  again  pass 
over  the  earth  so  have  I  sworn  not  to  be  angry  with 
thee  (Israel)  and  not  to  rebuke  thee." 

About  a  hundred  years  later  the  author  of  the 
Priest  Code  interprets  for  us  the  "  waters  of  Noah  " 
by  the  rainbow  sign  of  God's  Covenant  with  the  earth 
(Gen.  ix.  8—17). 

In  the  Asaph  Psalm  Ixxiv.  the  Psalmist  appeals  to 
God  by  the  Covenant  of  Creation,  to  fulfil  His  promise 
which  seems  to  be  delayed.  The  whole  passage  should 
be  studied;  we  can  but  quote  vv.  13 — 17  which  refer 
to  the  Covenant  of  Creation.  The  emphatic  use  of  the 
pronoun  Thou  should  be  noticed  and  also  the  refer- 
ence to  the  first  four  "  Days  of  Creation."    Thus : 

Day  I.    Light,  or  the  smiting  of  the  dragon  of  darkness; 
as  in  the  Babylonian  story. 

Thou  with  Thy  p6wer  |  didst  bre^k  the  sea, 

Bidst  shiver  the  heads  |  of  the  dragons  on  the  waters. 


140    CREATION  AND  DAVID  COVENANT   [ch. 

Day  II.     The  Firmament.     The  chaos  of  waters  divided; 
as  in  the  Babylonian  story. 
Thou  didst  rend  |  the  heads  of  Leviathan, 
Didst  ^ye  him  as  food  |  to  the  desert  folk. 

Day  III.     Waters  in  one  place;  dry  land  appears. 
Thou  didst  cleave  |  fountain  and  brook; 
Thou  didst  dry  |  perennial  i-ivers. 

Day  IV.     The  greater  and  lesser  lights. 
Thine  is  the  day,  |  Thine,  too,  the  night; 
Thou  didst  establish  |  the  lights  and  the  sun. 

The  Covenant  of  Creation  with  reference  to  Gen.  viii.  22. 
Thou  didst  appoint  |  all  boundaries  of  earth ; 
Summer  and  winter,  |  Thou  it  was  didst  form  them. 

It  will  be  seen  that  in  this  Psalm  the  metre  is 
2  +  2  and,  if  we  compare  the  closely  parallel  Psalm 
Ixxxix.,  the  study  of  metre  opens  up  a  most  interesting 
question.  For,  in  Ps.  Ixxxix.  the  metre,  for  the  most 
part,  is  the  common  one  of  3+3,  but  it  contains 
passages  of  2  +  2  metre ;  and  it  appears  to  me  that 
these  latter  passages  all  refer  to  the  Covenant  of 
Creation,  while  the  passages  in  3  +  3  metre  refer  to 
the  Covenant  of  David. 

I  shall  endeavour  to  represent  the  change  of  metre 
in  my  translation  and  must  leave  the  reader  to  judge 
whether  two  independent  Psalms  have  been  combined 
or  whether  the  writer  wished  to  place  side  by  side 
the  Covenant  of  David  and  the  Covenant  of  Creation 
and  varied  his  metre  to  suit  his  subject. 


VIII]     THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS      141 

(Ps.  Ixxxix.) 
Metre  2  +  2.     Covenant  of  Creation. 

(a)     2    I  sing  the  eternal  |  mercies  of  Jahve. 

(6)  I  make  known  with  my  mouth  |  Thy  faithfuhiess  for  ^ges. 

(ai)    3    I  said,  as  eternal,  |  mercy  shall  be  built. 

(bi)  As  the  heavens  Thou  establishest  |  (so)  Thy  faithfulness 

therein. 

Metre  3  +  3.     The  David  Covenant. 

4  A  c6venant  I  made  with  My  chosen ; 
I  sware  unto  David  My  servant, 

5  Thy  seed  I  establish  for  ever; 

And  build  up  thy  thr6ne  for  all  ages. 

It  will  be  seen  that  though  the  metre  is  different 
the  language  and  thought  is  identical  with  that  in 
vv.  2,  3.  It  would  seem  that  the  writer  wished,  like 
Jeremiah,  to  place  the  "  sure  mercies  of  David  "  side 
by  side  with  the  sure  mercies  of  Creation.  The  metre 
now  changes  back  to  that  of  vv.  2,  3. 

Metre  2+2.    Covenant  of  Creation. 

6  For  the  heavens  shall  praise  |  Thy  w6nder-work,  Jahve ; 
Thy  faithfulness  too  |  in  concourse  of  H61y-ones. 

7  For  wh6,  in  high-heaven,  |  compareth  with  Jahve? 
Who  matcheth  Jahve  |  'mid  sons  of  the  g6ds  ? 

8  A  G6d  revered  |  in  assembly  of  H61y-ones ; 

Gre^t  and  to  be  feared  |  by  all  that  are  arotind  Him. 

10  Thou  dost  16rd  it  |  o'er  the  pride  of  the  s6a ; 
When  his  waves  are  uplifted,  |  Thou  layest  to  rest. 

11  'Twas  Thou  that  didst  crush  |  proud-Rahab  as  slain, 
With  the  krm  of  Thy  might  |  didst  scatter  Thine  enemies. 


142   CREATION  AND  DAVID  COVENANT  [CH. 

12  Thine  are  the  heavens ;  |  Thine  too  the  6arth. 

The  w6rld  and  its  fulness;  [  Thou  (it  was)  didst  found  them. 

13  The  n6rth  and  the  south;  |  Thou  (it  was)  created  them. 
Tabor  and  Hermon  |  ring  with  Thy  n^me. 

14  Thine  is  the  arm ;  |  Thine  is  the  p6wer. 
Strong  is  Thy  hand ;  |  High  is  Thy  right-hand. 

15  Righteousness  and  judgement  |  the  foundation  of  Thy  thr6ne, 
Mercy  and  truth  |  that  g6  before  Thy  f^ce. 

The  reader  will  note  how  exactly  vv.  10  ff.  corre- 
spond with  the  verses  we  have  already  translated 
from  Ps.  Ixxiv. :  the  same  metre,  the  same  mythology, 
the  same  reference  to  the  "Days"  of  Creation,  the 
same  remarkable  use  of  the  emphatic  "  Thou." 

We  now  pass  to  verse  20  which  is  pure  prose  as 
follows : 

"  Thou  spakest  of  old  in  a  vision  with  Thy  saints 
[or,  possibly,  '  with  respect  to  Thy  Saint ']  and  didst 
say;—" 

These  words  form  an  introduction  to  the  Promise 
which  continues  as  follows : 

Metre  3+3.    David  Covenant. 

20  I  have  s6t  a  crown  (?)  on  a  hero; 
Have  exalted  one  chosen  of  the  people. 

21  I  fotind  Me  David  My  servant; 
With  Thy  h61y  oil  I  anointed  him. 

22  That  My  hand,  should  b6  his  st§,y ; 
And  mine  ^rm  should  ^\q  him  strength. 

23  That  the  enemy  should  not  exact; 

Nor  the  wicked  one  cause  him  affliction. 


VIII]     THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS      143 

24  I  will  beat  down  his  f6es  before  him, 

Will  smite  them  that  hate  him. 

25  While  with  him  is  My  truth  and  My  mercy, 
In  My  name  shall  his  h6rn  be  exalted. 

26  And  I  set  his  hand  on  the  sea. 

His  right-hand  on  the  rivers. 

27  He  names  Me,  Thou  art  my  Father, 
My  G6d  and  my  Rock-Salvation. 

28  While  I  too  appoint  him  My  firstborn, 
A  Most  High  to  the  kings  of  the  earth. 

29  My  mercy  I  keep  his  for  6ver, 

And  for  him  is  My  covenant  stablished. 

30  And  I  make  his  seed  eternal, 
His  thr6ne  as  the  days  of  heaven, 

31  Should  his  s6ns  forsake  My  law, 

So  as  not  to  walk  in  My  judgements, 

32  Should  they  profane  My  statutes 

So  as  n6t  to  observe  My  commandments, 

33  Then  I  visit  their  transgression  with  a  r6d, 

And  with  scourges  their  sin. 

34  Yet  from  him  I  remove  not  My  mercy; 
Nor  will  I  prove  false  to  My  faithfulness. 

35  My  C6venant  will  I  not  break; 

Nor  change  what  My  lips  have  announced. 

36  Once  for  k]\  have  I  8w6m  by  My  h61ine8s 
That  I  never  prove  false  to  D6.vid. 

37  His  seed  shall  be  for  ever, 

And  his  thr6ne  as  the  siin  bef6re  Me. 

38  It  shall  st4y  as  the  m6on  for  ever, 

And  the  witness  that  is  faithful  in  the  sk^. 

The  Psalm  continues  in  the  same  metre  to  plead 
with  God  (as  Ps.  Ixxiv.)  the  non-performance  of  His 


144  THE  OUTSPRING  [CH. 

promises,  until  we  come  to  the  last  two  verses  (61,  62) 
where  it  would  seem  to  break  once  more  into  the 
(2  +  2)  metre  which  we  have  already  found  in  vv.  2,  3, 
6—15.    Thus: 

51  Remember  0  Lord  |  the  reproach  of  Thy  servant ; 
How  I  bear  in  my  bosom  |  the  shame  of  the  Peoples : 

52  Wherewith  they  reproach —  |  Thine  enemies,  Jahve ! — 
Wherewith  they  reproach  |  the  footsteps  of  Thy  Christ. 

The  text,  however,  in  these  two  verses  is  by  no 
means  certain. 

I  propose,  in  the  present  chapter,  to  examine  one 
aspect  of  the  spring,  which  is  summed  up  under  the 
Hebrew  word  Tzemach^  a  word  signifying  that  "  out- 
spring  "  from  the  earth,  which  results  from  the  spring 
of  the  year.  It  is  most  unfortunate  that,  in  the  E.  V., 
this  word  should  have  been  translated  ^^  Branch,'' 
thus  hiding  from  the  English  reader  a  very  beautiful 
and  suggestive  thought. 

In  the  passages  which  follow  I  shall  indicate  the 
root  Tzemach,  whether  as  a  verb  or  as  a  svhstantivBf 
by  giving  the  translation  in  italics. 

(Is.  iv.  2.) 

In  that  day  there  shall  be 
The  outspring  of  Jahve  as  a  beauty  and  pride, 
And  the  fruit  of  the  land  as  a  glory  and  boast 
For  the  remnant  of  Israel. 

Here  the  "  outspring  of  Jahve "  answers  to  the 
"fruit  of  the  Land''  in  the  parallel  line.    It  is  called 


vni]     THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS      145 

the  "outspring  of  Jahve"  because  He  makes  it  to 
spring  forth  as  it  is  said  of  Paradise,  Gen.  ii.  9,  "  And 
out  of  the  ground  Jahve  Elohim  made  to  spring 
every  tree  that  was  pleasant  to  the  sight  and  good 
for  food." 

Such  was  the  intention  of  God  in  Creation.  This 
intention  was  hindered  by  the  Fall  in  which  Earth 
is  represented  as  sympathising.  "Thorns  also  and 
thistles  shall  it  (i.e.  the  Earth)  make  to  spring  for 
thee  "  (Gen.  iii.  18).  But,  though  hindered,  the  pur- 
pose of  God  still  remains  and  is  manifested  in  the 
parable  of  every  spring.  It  is  He  who  "  maketh  the 
grass  to  spring  for  the  cattle"  (Ps.  civ.  14);  "causing 
the  mountains  to  spring  with  grass  "  (Ps.  cxlvii.  8). 

But,  in  another  sense,  the  earth  may  be  said  to 
"bring  forth  fruit  of  itself";  consequently  Tzemach 
may  be  applied  to  the  earth  ;  and,  as  such,  it  is  fre- 
quently used  collectively,  e.g.  Ezek.  xvi.  7  "  the  out- 
spring  (E.V.  the  bud)  of  the  field  " ;  Hos.  viii.  7  "  t/ie 
outspring  (E.V.  bud)  shall  yield  no  meal." 

These  two  closely  related  thoughts  must  be  borne 
in  mind,  forming,  as  they  do,  a  parable  of  the  Christ. 
The  "  outspring  "  is  God's,  inasmuch  as  He,  the  "  Sun 
of  Righteousness,"  makes  it  to  grow.  But  the  "  out- 
spring "  is  the  earth's  since  the  earth  "  bringeth  forth 
fruit  of  itself." 

The  Second  Isaiah  expresses  a  similar  thought 
only  that,  in  hii  case,  the  picture  is  not  that  of  a  Sun 

K.  10 


146  THE  OUTSPRING  [ch. 

of  righteousness  but  rather  of  a  rain  of  righteous- 
ness from  heaven  which  the  thirsty  earth  should 
drink  in  and  thereby  become  fruitful  (cf.  Hos.  x.  12). 
Thus: 

(Is.  xlv.  8.) 

Ye  heavens  shower  down  from  ab6ve, 
Ye  skies  pour  down  with  Righteousness, 
Let  them  fruit  with  Salvation — earth  open, 
Let  Righteousness  spring  forth  at  once, 
I,  Jahve,  f  have  created  it. 

Again, 

(Is.  Ixi.  11.) 

For  as  earth  brings  forth  her  outspring^ 
And  as  garden  makes  s6eds  to  spring  out, 
So  J^hve  makes  Righteousness  spring. 
Even  praise  before  all  the  nations. 

Jeremiah  associates  this  thought  of  the  "out- 
spring"  with  a  personal  Deliverer  of  the  family  of 
David. 

(Jer.  xxiii.  5  f.) 

Beh61d  the  d^ys  are  c6ming,  saith  J^hve, 
That  I  i-^ise  up  for  D^vid  a  righteous  oUtspring, 
And  a  King  shall  reign  and  pr6sper, 
And  shall  Execute  judgement  and  righteousness  on  6arth. 
In  his  days  shall  Judah  be  saved. 
And  Israel  dwell  in  sectirity: 
And  this  is  his  name  they  shall  cA-ll  (him) 
J§,hve  our  Righteousness. 


VIII]    THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS      147 

(Jer.  xxxiii.  15.) 
I  raise  up  for  D4vid  an  outspring  of  n'ghteousness 
And  he  shall  execute  judgement  and  rfghteousness  on  earth. 
In  those  days  shall  Judah  be  saved, 
And  Jerusalem  dwell  in  security : 
And  this  is  what  they  shall  call  (it) 
Jlihve  our  Righteousness. 

If  we  may  trust  the  text  in  these  closely 
related  passages,  we  see  that  while  one  speaks  of  a 
'^righteous  outspring^"  who  is  himself  to  be  called 
^^Jahve  our  righteousness"  the  other  speaks  of  an 
"  out-spring  of  righteousness  "  in  the  earth,  which  is 
to  bear  the  Name  of  Him  who  produces  it,  and  is  to  be 
called  "  Jahve  our  righteousness.''  Both  thoughts  are 
needed.  In  Palestine,  where  the  winter  rains  were 
followed  by  an  almost  tropical  growth,  the  outburst, 
the  spring,  was  well  fitted  to  be  a  parable  of  the 
New  Creation. 

Thus  Joel  (ii.  21  ff.)  says: 

21  Fear  not  0  earth ;  |  be  joyful  and  glad, 
For  Jahve  is  d6ing  great  things. 

22  Fear  not,  ye  beasts  of  the  field ; 

For  the  pastures  of  the  wilderness  are  sproliting; 

For  the  trees  are  giving  their  fi'tiit. 

Both  fig-tree  and  vine  are  yielding  their  strength. 

23  So  ye  children  of  Zion  be  joyful  and  glad 
In  Jahve  your  G6d: 

For  to  you  He  hath  given  the  rain  for  righteousness. 

There  is  a  play  upon  the  word  moreh,  "  rain  "  in 
the  last  line.    It  denotes  the  "  former  rain''  i.e.  the 


148  THE  OUTSPRING  [CH. 

heavy  rain  at  the  beginning  of  the  winter,  but  it  also 
signifies  "a  teacher.''  According  to  the  Prophet's 
thought  the  earth  and  the  beasts  have  cause  to  rejoice ; 
but  the  "Children  of  Zion"  should  see  something 
deeper  in  this  parable  of  God's  gift  of  rain  which 
should  speak  to  them  of  the  growth  of  righteousness. 
So,  too,  the  words  which  follow  speak  of  "  the  latter 
rain  in  the  first  {month),''  E.  V.  or  "  the  latter  rain 
first  of  all."  Here  again  a  double  meaning  is  in- 
tended: the  ^^ latter  rain"  is  in  the  first  (spring) 
month,  but  truly  it  is  ^^ first  of  all "  in  reference  to 
the  ^'afterwards"  (v.  28,  Heb.  iii.  l)when  God  would 
"  pour  out  His  Spirit  upon  all  flesh."  The  first  out- 
pouring is  a  parable  of  the  second.    Again, 

(Is.  Ixvii.  10  f.) 

For  like  as  the  rkin  cometh  d6wn 

And  the  sn6w  out  of  h6aven, 

Nor  rettrneth  again, 

Until  it  have  watered  the  earth, 

And  mkde  it  to  bring  forth  and  gprlng; 

Giving  both  seed  to  the  s6wer, 

And  br6ad  to  the  6ater: 

86  shall  it  U  with  My  Word 

That  Cometh  f6rth  from  My  Modth; 

It  shall  n6t  return  to  Me  6mpty, 

Until  it  have  done  what  I  will, 

And  have  prospered  in  that  which  I  s6nd  it 

In  the  times  of  the  Prophet  Zeehariah  Tzemach 
had  become  personified.    Thus,  iii.  8 :  "  Hear  now  0 


VIII]      THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS     149 

Joshua  the  high  priest,  thou  and  thy  fellows  that  sit 
before  thee;  for  men  of  typical-import  they  are: — 
For  behold  I  am  going  to  bring  My  servant  Tzemach 
— And  he  it  is  that  shall  build  the  temple  of  Jahve, 
and  he  it  is  that  shall  bear  the  dignity ;  and  shall  sit 
and  rule  upon  his  throne,  and  the  counsel  of  peace 
shall  be  between  them  both." 

And  again,  vi.  12:  "Behold  the  man  whose  name 
is  Tzemach  {the  outsprirvg) ;  from  his  own  place  he 
shall  spring  wp  and  build  the  temple  of  Jahve." 

Thus  Zechariah  regarded  Joshua  and  Zerubbabel, 
the  Temple-builders  of  his  own  day,  merely  as  types 
of  the  true  Temple-builder  who  was  to  come.  This 
true  Temple-builder  he  calls  by  the  name  Tzemach 
thereby  associating  him  with  the  thoughts  which  we 
have  already  considered. 

We  must,  however,  briefly  allude  to  a  remark- 
able development  of  the  word  Tzeimwh  whereby  it 
came  to  denote  not  merely  the  outspring  fi'om  the 
ground  but  the  outspring  of  light,  i.e.  the  dayspring. 
This  arose,  in  part,  from  the  use  of  dvaroKr}  for 
Tzemach  in  the  Greek  versions.  For  dvarokr)  has 
both  meanings ;  it  signifies  that  which  springs  from 
the  ground  (see  Ezek.  xvi.  7,  xvii.  9  f.  and  compare 
Gen.  xix.  25  ;  Ps.  Ixiv.  (Ixv.)  11)  and  also  the  out- 
spring of  light,  the  dayspring  (Jer.  xxiii.  5  ;  xxxiii. 
15,  Theod.  and  Sym. ;  Zech.  iii.  8,  vi.  12).  In  the 
later  Hebrew  and  Syriac  the  root  Tzemach  tended 

10—3 


160  THE  OUTSPRING  [CH. 

more  towards  the  secondary  meaning  of  the  day- 
spring.  Thus  the  '^  Day  spring  from  on  high''  (Lk.  i. 
78)  is  to  be  traced  to  the  group  of  Tzemach  prophecies. 

There  is  a  fine  poetical  passage  in  Ps.  Ixv.  10 — 14 
where  the  course  of  God's  bounty  through  the  year  is 
compared  to  the  laden  wagon  of  a  "  harvest-home," 
dropping  its  richness  as  its  goes. 

I  confess  I  can  make  nothing  of  the  metre  of  vv, 
10,  11,  but  vv.  12 — 14  are  in  three  beats. 

10  Thou  hast  visited  the  earth  and  saturated  her, 
Enriching  her  with  the  water-full  stream  of  God : 

11  Watering  her  furrows,  levelling  her  ridges, 

Thou  mellowest  her  with    rain-drops,  Thou    blessest   her 
outspring. 

12  Thou  hast  cr6wned  the  year  of  Thy  goodness; 
And  Thy  wh^el-tracks  drop  with  plenty. 

13  They  dr6p  on  the  wilderness-pastures, 
And  the  hills  are  girdled  with  j6y. 

14  The  meadows  are  clothed  with  fl6cks; 
And  the  valleys  are  c6vered  with  c6m ; 
They  shout  for  joy — yea  sing. 

The  reader  will  notice  the  reference  to  T^ema^h 
in  V.  11. 

Again,  in  the  Psalm  of  the  three-fold  priestly 
Blessing  (Ps.  Ixvii.)  the  pledge  of  the  Blessing  for  the 
world  is  found  in  the  fruitful  season,  though  in  this 
case  the  word  Tzemach  is  not  used: 

Earth  hath  yielded  her  Increase; 
G6d  our  God  will  bl^ss  us. 


viii]      THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS     161 

Compare  also  Ezek.  xxxiv.  27,  Zech.  viii.  12. 

These  thoughts  of  the  earth's  fertility  are  coupled 
with  the  advent  of  a  Prince  of  Peace  in  Ps.  Ixxii., 
just  as  in  the  Prophets. 

1  Give  Thy  judgements,  0  God,  to  the  Kfng, 
Thy  righteousness  unto  the  Prince. 

2  May  he  right  Thy  People  with  m6rcy, 
And  Thy  P6or-one8  with  justice. 

3  May  the  motintains  uplift  their  peace, 
And  the  hills  with  righteousness.... 

4  May  he  j6dge  the  p6or  of  the  P^ple, 
May  he  save  the  s6ns  of  the  n^edy : — 

And  crush  the  oppressor. 
6    May  he  lengthen  out  (d&ys)  with  the  s6u, 
With  the  m6on  for  endless  ^es. 

6  Coming  down  like  rain  upon  gr4ss, 
As  the  dr6ps  that  drip  on  the  earth. 

7  Righteousness  will  bloom  in  his  days, 
Great  peace  till  moons  be  no  m6re. 

8  So  he  rules  from  s^a  to  s^a, 

From  the  River  to  bounds  of  earth. 

9  Before  him  f6e8  bow  d6wn 
And  his  enemies  lick  the  d6st. 

10  The  Kings  of  the  fsles  and  of  T^rshish  ]  bring  their  gifts, 
The  Kings  of  Sh^ba  and  Seba  |  6ffer  their  presents. 

11  All  Kings  bow  down  unto  him;  [  all  nations  do  service. 

12  For  he  frees   the  poor   that   crieth;  |  the   afflicted   and 

helpless. 

13  He  pities  the  poor  and  the  n^edy; 
Yea  the  s6ul8  of  the  n^edy  he  saves. 

14  From  violence  and  wr6ng  he  redelms  them; 
And  their  blood,  in  his  sight,  is  precious. 


152  THE  OUTSPRING  [ch. 

15 

So  the  prayer  for  him  is  continuous ;  |  all  day  do  they  bl6s» 
him. 

16  Let  the  outspread  of  c6rn  be  on  6arth  j  to  the  t6p  of  the  hfllg. 
Let  its  fruitage  rustle  like  Lebanon: 

So  they  bl6ssom  [from  the  city*]  as  the  herbage  of  the  earth. 

17  May  his  nkme  endure  for  ever; 
May  his  n^me  increase  with  the  sun. 

The  growing  light  and  strength  of  the  sun  through 
the  year  is  regarded  as  a  type  of  the  great  year  of 
Eternity,  in  which  the  Sun  of  Righteousness  with 
increasing  light  will  bring  forth  more  and  more  fruit 
from  humanity. 

We  pass  now  to  vv.  10 — 14  of  Ps.  Ixxxv.  where 
the  metre  is  very  clearly  marked  in  three  beats.  The 
Psalm  anticipates  the  return  of  the  Divine  Glory  to 
earth. 

19    His  salvation  is  nigh  to  His  fearers, 
That  gl6ry  may  dw611  in  our  earth. 

11  Mercy  and  truth  are  met, 
Righteousness  and  peace  have  embraced. 

12  Truth  from  earth  outsprings, 

And  righteousness  beams  from  Heaven. 

13  So  J^hve  gives  the  g6od, 

Our  earth,  too,  gives  her  increase. 

14  Righteousness  marches  before  Him, 
And  keeps  the  way  of  His  st^ps. 

1  I  would  suggest  that  the  words  "from  the  city,"  which  break  the 
metre,  were  introduced,  as  a  gloss,  to  bring  out  the  thought  of  tha 
passage;  the  crop  being  not  one  of  corn  and  flowers  but  of  human 
righteousness. 


VIII]     THE  POETRY  OF  THE  SEASONS      153 

There  is  no  passage  in  the  Psalter  that  brings 
home  the  meaning  of  Tzemach  more  perfectly  than 
this.  As  heaven  and  earth  combine  to  produce  the 
outcome  of  the  seasons  in  the  natural  year,  so,  in 
God's  great  year,  Heaven  and  earth  will  combine  to 
produce  the  "  man  whose  name  is  Tzemach  '  and  the 
fruits  of  the  Spirit.  To  this  thought  I  would  apply 
the  words  of  Browning: 

"And  the  emulous  heaven  yearned  down, 
made  effort  to  reach  the  earth, 
As  the  earth  had  done  her  best,  in  my  passioB 
to  reach  the  sky." 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Briggs,  C.  A.    Study  of  Holy  Scripture. 

Budde,  K.    Poetry  {Hebrew).    In  Hastings'  Diet,  of  Bible.    A 

ver}'  useful  Article. 
Cobb,  W.  H.    A  criticism  of  Systems  of  Heb.  Metre  (Oxford, 

1905).     Contains  a  full  bibliography  up  to  1904. 
Cooke,  G.  A.    Hist,  and  Song  of  Deborah. 
Harper,  A.     The  Song  of  Solomon. 
Kautzsch,  E.    Die  Poesie  und  die  poet.  BilcJier  des  Alt.  Test. 

(1902). 

Outline  of  hist,  of  Literature  of  O.  T.  (English  Translation). 

Edition  of  Proverbs  tcith  critical  Heb.  text. 

King,   E.   G.      The   Psalms    in    three   Collections   (Deighton, 

Bell  &  Co.). 
Koiiig,  E.   Die  Poesie  des  alten  Testaments.    Recently  published. 

I  have  not  yet  seen  this  book. 
Moulton,  R.  G.     The  literary  study  of  the  Bible. 
Rothstein,  J.  W.    Song  of  Songs.    In  Hastings,' Diet,  of  Bible. 

Grundzilge  des  heb.  Rhythmus  (Leipzig,  1909). 

Zapletal,  0.  P.    De  Poesi  Hebraeorum  (1909).    A  hand-book  of 

46  pages,  written  in  Latin  for  School  use. 

Das  Deboralied. 


INDEX 


Accent,  viii,  ix,  x 

Alexandrines,  lines  like,  67 

Alliteration,  9,  53 

Alphabet,  order  of,  54-56 ;  poetry 
of,  54  ff.  ;  how  divided  for 
alphabetical  poems,  62,  66, 
70,  71  f. 

Amos,  uses  the  Kinah  metre, 
39;  paradox  of,* 74;  uses  re- 
frain, 103  f. 

Archaisms,  7 ;  why  not  more 
frequent,  1 

Asaph,  and  Joseph,  22-24,  26, 
29;  Asaph  Psalms,  99 

Assonance,  127 

Assonance,  and  paronomasia, 
xii-xiv 

Assyria,  Ezekiel's  poem  on  its 
fall,  43  f. 

Babylon,   a    dirge    on    its    fall, 

44-47 
Bleat,  used  of  the  stag,  and  of 

the  soul,  50 
Blessing   of  Jacob,  21  ff. ;   Ps. 

Ixxx.  compared  with,  27-29 
Book  op  Jashar,  3,  5,  17 
Book  op  the  wars  op  Jahve,  5 
Browning,  25,  99,  153 

Cain  (Kenite),  2 

Cobb,  Systems  of  Hebrew  Metre^ 

27 
Collections  op  Poetry,  4f. 
Covenant,  and  number  ten,  71 
Covenant,  of  Creation,  and  of 

David,  138  £E. 

David,  16 ;  Elegy  on  Jonathan, 

17-21 
Days  of  Creation,  132  fif. 


Deborah,  Song  of,  6-14 

Deuteronomy,  its  promise  of 
temporal  prosperity  needed 
supplementing,  75  f.,  81 

Didactic  poetry,  71 

Difficulty  op  determining  laws 
op  Heb.  verse,  xi 

Dragon  of  darkness,  139 

Dramatic  lyrics,  121  flf. 

Duplicate  texts,  xi 

Ephraim,  and  "  fruitfulness,"  23 
EzEKiEL,  as  a  poet,  42  ff. 

Fable  of  Jotham,  14  f. 

Good  God  and  good  man,  Pss. 
cxi.,  cxii.,  68-71 

Habakkuk's  difficulty,  76 
Harper,  Dr,  quoted,  125  f. 
Hedad,  53 

Ingathering,  Feast  of,  22  f. ;  of 
sheep,  25  f. 

Isaiah,  his  lament  for  his  people, 
49;  Elegy  on  Moab,  53;  his 
use  of  the  refrain,  105  f.;  his 
Song  on  Ari^l,  127  f . ;  Song 
of  God's  Vineyard,  129 ;  on 
the  outspring  (Tzemach),  144 

Isaiah  (the  Second),  on  the 
Suffering  Servant,  91-98 ;  on 
the  outspring  (Tzemach), 
145  f.,  148 

Jeremiah,  use  of  Kinah  metre, 
40;  his  life-task,  76 ff.;  on 
the  New  Covenant,  Covenant 
of  Creation,  and  of  David,  138 

Joel,  52 


156 


INDEX 


Jonathan,  the  roebuck  of  Israel, 

18  f. 
Joseph,  Messiah  ben,  29 
JuDAH,  blessing  on,  29-32 

Eautzbch,  20 

Kenites,  the  smiths  of  the 
ancient  world ;  see  also  Cain 

KfNAH,  the  lament  for  the  dead, 
applied  to  death  of  nations 
by  the  Prophets,  39  ff .  ;  wider 
use  of  this  metre,  48  £f. 

Lamentations,  Book  of,  54  ff. 

Megiddo,  effect  of  the  battle,  76 
Metbe,  defined,  x 

Noah,  covenant  of,  139 

Orthodoxy  of  Job's  feibnds,  81  f. 

OuTSPRiNG  (Tzemach,  E.V., 
badly,  "  Branch  "),  from  the 
earth,  of  righteousness,  of 
Hght  from  heaven,  personi- 
fied, 144-153 

Parallelism,  vi-viii 
Poetry,  religious,  defined,  t 
Problem,  Why  do  the  righteous 
suft'er  ?  Amos,  Habakkuk, 
Deuteronomy,  Jeremiah, 
Psalms,  Job,  Second  Isaiah, 
74-102 

EiPBAiN,  in  rhetoric,  103  f. ;  in 
poetry,  50  fi.,  80,  lllf.,  114  f. 


Eeuss,  quoted,  4 
KOTHSTEIN,  49,  110  f. 

Seasons,  poetry  of,  132  ff. 
Servant    (of    God),    applied    to 

Israel,  78  ff.,   90  ff. 
Shelley,  132,  133 
Shepherd,  of  the  stars,  25  ;  of 

Israel,    26  ff.  ;    Psalm   of   the 

Good,  117  f. 
Solomon,  3,  5  f. ;  Song  of  {Song 

of  Songs),  121  ff. 
Song,    of    Lamech,    1  ;    of    De- 
borah, 6  ff. ;  of  Moses,  32  ff. ; 

on    AriM,    127  f. ;     on    God's 

Vineyard,  129 
Speaker,  change  of,    sometimes 

indicated  by  change  of  metre, 

121,     123,    128;    in    Second 

Psalm,  138 
Strophe,  103  flf. 

Taunt-songs,  5,  9,  11  ff. 

Teaching  op  the  Twelve 
Apostles,  on  Vine  of  David, 
129 

Theophany,  God's  kingdom  on 
earth  estabhshed  by,  34  ff. 

Truth,  the  Serl  of  God,  71 

Tzemach,  "  outspring  "  from 
the  earth,  144  ff. ;  "  out- 
spring"  of  light,  149  f. 

Vine  op  David,  31,  129 

Zaflstal,  9 


Cambridge:  printed  by  john  clay,  m.a.  at  the  university  press 


THE 

CAMBRIDGE  MANUALS 

OF  SCIENCE  AND  LITERATURE 

Published  by  the  Cambridge  University  Press 

GENERAL  EDITORS 

P.  GILES.  Litt.D. 

Master  of  Emmanuel  College 

and 
A.  C  SEWARD,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

Professor  of  Botany  in  the  University  of  Cambridge 

SIXTY  VOLUMES  NOW  READY 
HISTORY  AND   ARCHAEOLOGY 

Ancient  Assyria.     By  Rev.  C.  H.  W.  Johns.  Litt.D. 

Ancient  Babylonia.     By  Rev.  C.  H.  W.  Johns,  Litt.D. 

A    History   of    Civilization   in    Palestine.     By  Prof.    R.   A.    S. 

Macalister,  M.A.,  F.S.A. 
China  and^+he  Manchus.     By  Prof.  H.  A.  Giles,  LL.D. 
The  Civilization  of  Ancient  Mexico.     By  Lewis  Spence. 
The  Vikings.     By  Prof.  Allen  Mawer,  M.A. 
New  Zealand.    By  the  Hon.  Sir  Robert  Stout.  K.C.M.G.,  LL.D., 

and  J.  Logan  Stout,  LL.B.  (N.Z.). 
The    Ground    Plan    of    the    English    Parish    Church.     By    A. 

Hamilton  Thompson,  M.A.,  F.S.A. 
The  Historical  Growth  of  the  English  Parish  Church.     By  A. 

Hamilton  Thompson,  M.A.,  F.S.A. 
Brasses.     By  J.  S.  M.  Ward.  B.A.,  F.R.Hist.S. 
Ancient  Stained  and  Painted  Glass.     By  F.  S.  Eden. 

LITERARY   HISTORY 

The  Early  Religious  Poetry  of   the    Hebrews.     By   the   Rev. 

E.  G.  King.  D.D. 
The  Early  Religious  Poetry  of  Persia.      By  the  Rev.  Prof.  J. 

Hope  Moulton,  D.D.,  D.Theol.  (Berlin). 


LITERARY  HISTORY  (continued) 

The  History  of  the  EngHsh  Bible.     By  the  Rev.  John  Brown, 

d.d: 

EngHsh  Dialects  from  the  Eighth  Century  to  the  Present  Day. 

By  W.  W.  Skeat.  Litt.D..  D.C.L..  F.B.A. 
King  Arthur  in   History  and  Legend.      By   Prof.  W.   Lewis 

Jones,  M.A. 
The  Icelandic  Sagas.     By  W.  A.  Craigie,  LL.D. 
Greek  Tragedy.     By  J.  T.  Sheppard,  M.A. 
The  Ballad  in  Literature.     By  T.  F.  Henderson. 
Goethe  and  the  Twentieth  Century.     By  Prof.  J.  G.  RoBertson, 

M.A.,  Ph.D. 
The  Troubadours.     By  the  Rev.  H.  J.  Chaytor,  M.A. 

PHILOSOPHY  AND  RELIGION 

The  Idea  of  God  in  Early  Religions.     By  Dr  F.  B.  Jevons. 

Comparative  Religion.     By  Dr  F.  B.  Jevons. 

The  Moral  Life  and  Moral  Worth.     By  Prof.  Sorley.  Litt.D. 

The  English  Puritans.     By  the  Rev.  John  Brown,  D.D. 

An  Historical  Account  of  the  Rise  and  Development  of  Presby- 

terianism  in  Scotland.     By  the  Rt  Hon.  the  Lord  Balfour 

of  Burleigh.  K.T..  G.C.M.G. 
Methodism.     By  Rev.  H.  B.  Workman,  D.Lit. 

EDUCATION 

Life  in  the  Medieval  University.     By  R.  S.  Rait.  M.A. 

ECONOMICS 

Cash  and  Credit.     By  D.  A.  Barker,  I.C.S. 

LAW 

The  Administration  of  Justice  in  Criminal  Matters  (in  England 
and  Wales).     By  G.  Glover  Alexander,  M.A.,  LL.M. 

BIOLOGY 

The  Coming  of  Evolution.     By  Prof.  J.  W.  Judd.  C.B.,  F.R.S. 
Heredity  in  the  Light  of  Recent  Research.    By  L.  Doncaster, 

M.A. 
Primitive  Animals.     By  Geoffrey  Smith.  M.A. 
The  Individual  in  the  Animal  Kingdom.     By  J.  S.  Huxley,  B.A. 
Life  in  the  Sea.     By  James  Johnstone.  B.Sc. 
The  Migration  of  Birds.     By  T.  A.  Coward. 
Spiders.     By  C.  Warburton.  M.A. 
House  Flies.     By  C.  G.  Hewitt,  D.Sc. 
Earthworms  and  their  Allies.     By  F.  E.  Beddard,  F.R.S. 


ANTHROPOLOGY 

The  Wanderings  of  Peoples.     By  Dr  A.  C.  Hadaon,  F.R.S. 
Prehistoric  Man.     By  Dr  W.  L.  H.  Duckworth. 

GEOLOGY 

Rocks  and  their  Origins.     By  Prof.  Grenville  A.  J.  Cole. 
The  Work  of  Rain  and  Rivers.     By  T.  G.  Bonney,  Sc.D. 
The  Natural  History  of  Coal.     By  Dr  E.  A.  Newell  Arber. 
The  Natural  History  of  Clay.     By  Alfred  B.  Searle. 
The  Origin  of  Earthquakes.     By  C.  Davison,  Sc.D.,  F.G.S. 

BOTANY 

Plant- Animals :  a  Study  in  Symbiosis.     By  Prof.  F.  W.  Keeble. 
Plant-Life  on  Land.     By  Prof.  F.  O.  Bower.  Sc.D.,  F.R.S. 
Links  with  the  Past  in  the  Plant- World.    By  Prof.  A.  C.  Seward. 

PHYSICS 

The  Earth.     By  Prof.  J.  H.  Poynting,  F.R.S. 

The  Atmosphere.     By  A.  J.  Berry,  M.A. 

The  Physical  Basis  of  Music.     By  A.  Wood,  M.A. 

PSYCHOLOGY 

An  Introduction  to  Experimental  Psychology.     By  Dr  C.   S. 

Myers. 
The  Psychology  of  Insanity.     By  Bernard  Hart,  M.D. 

INDUSTRIAL  AND  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE 

The  Modern  Locomotive.     By  C.  Edgar  Allen,  A.M.I.Mech.E. 

The  Modern  Warship.     By  E.  L.  Attwood. 

Aerial  Locomotion.     By  E.   H.   Harper,  M.A.,  and  Allan  E. 

Ferguson,  B.Sc. 
Electricity  in  Locomotion.     By  A.  G.  Whyte,  B.Sc. 
The  Story  of  a  Loaf  of  Bread.     By  Prof.  T.  B.  Wood,  M.A. 
Brewing.     By  A.  Chaston  Chapman,  F.I.C. 

SOME  VOLUMES  IN  PREPARATION 
HISTORY  AND  ARCHAEOLOGY 

The  Aryans.     By  Prof.  M.  Winternitz. 

The  Peoples  of  India.     By  J,  D.  Anderson. 

Prehistoric  Britain.     By  L.  McL.  Mann. 

The  Balkan  Peoples.     By  J.  D.  Bourchier. 

The  Evolution  of  Japan.     By  Prof.  J.  H.  Longford. 


HISTORY  AND  ARCHAEOLOGY  (continued) 

The  West  Indies.     By  Sir  Daniel  Morris,  K.C.M.G. 

The  Royal  Navy.     By  John  Leyland. 

Gypsies.     By  John  Sampson. 

English  Monasteries.     By  A.  H.  Thompson,  M.A. 

A  Grammar  of  Heraldry.     By  W.  H.  St  John  Hope,  Litt.D. 

Celtic  Art.     By  Joseph  Anderson,  LL.D. 

LITERARY  HISTORY 

The  Book.     By  H.  G.  Aldis,  M.A. 

Pantomime.     By  D.  L.  Murray. 

Folk  Song  and  Dance.     By  Miss  Neal  and  F.  Kitson. 

PHILOSOPHY  AND   RELIGION 

The  Moral  and  Political  Ideas  of  Plato.     By  Mrs  A.  M.  Adam. 
The  Beautiful.     By  Vernon  Lee. 

ECONOMICS 

The  Theory  of  Money.     By  D.  A.  Barker. 
Women's  Work.     By  Miss  Constance  Smith. 

EDUCATION 

German  School  Education.     By  Prof.  K.  H.  Breul,  Litt.D. 
The  Old  Grammar  Schools.     By  Prof.  Foster  Watson. 

PHYSICS 

Beyond  the  Atom.     By  Prof.  J.  Cox. 

The  Sun.     By  Prof.  R.  A.  Sampson. 

Wireless  Telegraphy.     By  C.  L.  Fortescue,  M.A, 

Rontgen  Rays.     By  Prof.  W.  H.  Bragg.  F.R.S. 

BIOLOGY 

Bees  and  Wasps.     By  O.  H.  Latter,  M.A. 

The  Life-story  of  Insects.     By  Prof.  G.  H.  Carpenter. 

The  Wanderings  of  Animals.     By  H.  F.  Gadow,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

GEOLOGY 

Submerged  Forests.     By  Clement  Reid,  F.R.S. 
Coast  Erosion.     By  Prof.  T.  J.  Jehu. 

INDUSTRIAL  AND  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE 

Coal  Mining.     By  T.  C.  Cantrill. 
Leather.     By  Prof.  H.  R.* Procter. 

Cambridge  University  Press 

C.  F.  Clay,  Manager 

London :   Fetter  Lane,  E.C. 

Edinburgh:    100,  Princes  Street 


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THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


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